The Texas Department of Transportation estimates that for the past several years, 10 people have died every day in crashes in Texas.

This grim reality ultimately led to the creation of TxDOT’s “End the Streak” campaign, which urges Texans to take personal safety measures when they take to the road to end the 21-year streak of daily deaths. The last day without a death on Texas roadways was Nov. 7, 2000.

According to TxDOT, most crashes and fatalities are preventable and caused by speeding, drunk driving and distracted driving. Texas Transportation Commissioner Laura Ryan said in a March 14 press release improving the roadways is a shared responsibility between drivers and the state.

“Driver behavior is one of the causes, but also one of the most important solutions,” Ryan said. “In 2021, a total of 1,522 people were killed because of speed, and a total of 1,219 people were killed because they were not wearing a seatbelt. These were decisions made by people that could have potentially saved 2,741 lives.”

Data provided by the Princeton Fire Department does not account for fatal crashes, but Deputy Chief Michael Stiltz said the crash volume is getting back to its normal levels following a lull in 2020.

Unlike data provided by TxDOT, fire department numbers account for any wrecks on roads in the city, not just state roads.

According to crash data collected by the department, from Jan. 1, 2021 to Dec. 31, 2021, there were 324 crashes in Princeton–a 96% increase in traffic accidents – compared to 165 crashes in 2020.

Of the 324 wrecks, 202 of them had some type of injury while 122 had no injuries. Included with the 202 crashes with injuries are five incidents where a car struck a pedestrian.

In the first two months of this year, between Jan. 1 through March 28, data collected shows Princeton has seen 50 crashes, roughly 15%, of the 2021 total. There have been 18 wrecks with injuries through the first three months of the year, with another 32 crashes having no injuries.

For the full story, see the March 31 issue.