CDOT campaign reminds El Paso County drivers not to speed

Haga clic aquí para ver este comunicado de prensa La campaña del Departamento de Transporte de Colorado recuerda a los conductores del condado de El Paso no circular a altas velocidades en español.

El Paso County — The Colorado Department of Transportation and Colorado State Patrol (CSP) are raising awareness of the risks of speeding and reminding El Paso County drivers to obey speed limits. In El Paso County, there were 22 speeding-involved fatalities in 2022. That accounts for 28% of the El Paso County roadway fatalities (80) in 2022. This marks a 57% increase from the 14 speeding fatalities in 2021.

Nationally, there was a 17% increase in speeding-related crash fatalities from 2019-2020. El Paso County’s trend was more concerning, increasing 43% during the same timeframe . The 2022 El Paso County speeding fatalities align with the 29% rate of national roadway fatalities that involve speeding.

“Speeding is a selfish choice that can have deadly consequences for the driver, passengers, bicyclists and pedestrians,” said CDOT’s Office of Transportation Safety Director Darrell Lingk. “Speeding reduces a driver’s ability to navigate hazards safely and affects stopping distances. Speeding remains a leading cause of traffic fatalities in El Paso County and speed limits exist to protect everyone on the road.”

According to new data from CDOT, speed was a leading factor in fatal crashes in Colorado in 2022. Alcohol and lane violations also topped the list.

“Speeding continues to be a primary or contributing factor of far too many roadway fatalities across Colorado. Our data shows that El Paso County has received the largest number of speeding citations in the past three years,” said Col. Matthew C. Packard, chief of the Colorado State Patrol. "The Patrol and our regional law enforcement partners will hold drivers accountable and enforce speed limits. Saving lives is core to our mission and enforcing speed limits is one of the best ways to do so.”

CDOT’s English and Spanish speeding campaign will be active in El Paso County starting January 16. The campaign reminds drivers that there is never an excuse to speed. Using a series of catastrophic and comical scenarios, CDOT and CSP are helping drivers understand that speeding is never worth it, especially when lives are at stake. Review the full campaign creative at: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1NX5G7Sv-P7e7bqQ0bW_I9EEKewgRdWBx.

Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows additional concerning speeding statistics in 2020:

• Local roads saw the most speeding, with 87% of all speeding-related traffic fatalities occurring on non-interstate roads
• Speeding contributed to 37% of the fatal crashes in work zones
• Speeding was a factor in more fatal crashes on wet roads than dry roads