Amid rise in Ohio traffic deaths in 2015, safe holiday travel urged

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — State officials preached road safety Tuesday in anticipation of heavy end-of-year holiday travel, as Ohio already has dozens more traffic deaths this year than in all of 2014.

State Highway Patrol statistics show 1,023 traffic fatalities confirmed so far in 2015, with several dozen more not yet verified. Ohio had 981 traffic deaths in 2014.

The patrol’s superintendent, Col. Paul Pride, said travelers can help keep themselves and others safe by wearing seat belts, respecting speed limits and avoiding behaviors that contribute to crashes, such as drunken driving or using a cellphone while at the wheel.

About 60 percent of Ohio’s fatal crashes this year involved someone not wearing a seat belt, and about one-third of the crashes involved an impaired driver, said Lt. Craig Cvetan, a patrol spokesman.

To illustrate the number of lives lost, employees set up rows of folding chairs Tuesday in a display behind Department of Transportation headquarters in Columbus, with each seat representing a 2015 traffic death.

“We just want folks to make it to where they’re going in one piece. Next year at this time, we would like for your chair to be filled at the Christmas table. Unfortunately, this year, 1,070 chairs are going to be empty,” Pride said.

Jerry Wray, the director of the Ohio Department of Transportation, said the increase in Ohio crash fatalities mirrors a national trend.

The Highway Patrol said it will have extra troopers watching for aggressive or impaired drivers during the holiday period. Last year, 24 people died in crashes between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day.

Auto club AAA predicts a record 4 million Ohioans will travel more than 50 miles from home this week, the department said.

The Ohio Turnpike, which joined the call for safe, attentive driving, estimates 160,000 vehicles will use that route across northern Ohio on Wednesday     alone.