editorials

Monday morning. Back to the grind. And for many metro commuters, back on slow, gridlocked roads.

Some may miss the wide-open rural roads they used during their Thanksgiving travels. But they may be safer in today's metro traffic.

With many motorists planning trips for Christmas and New Year's, it's worth spending some time with SafeRoadMaps.org, a website created by the University of Minnesota's Center for Excellence in Rural Safety, an organization made possible four years ago by legislation originating in the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, whose chairman, Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., has advocated for a greater focus on safer rural driving.

The website has several features, including searchable maps that can indicate which routes are statistically most dangerous. Particularly treacherous routes can show up as "hot zones," which may make travelers not only aware, but may lead them to consider using other routes. And the site can inform public policymakers as well, as they consider where to invest limited tax dollars for rural road reconstruction and other safety measures.

The stark statistics on rural road fatalities show the value of the center's efforts. Nationally, the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled was 2.5 times higher in rural areas than on urban roads, according to the most recent (2007) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study, which adds that even though only 23 percent of the U.S. population can be classified as rural, fatalities on those roads accounted for 57 percent of all traffic deaths.

The causes of the rural/urban divide are complex, but most experts blame both human and technological factors. "It's riskier road conditions matched by riskier driver behavior," said Cheri Marti, director of the Department of Public Safety's Office of Traffic Safety.

The biggest culprit may be speed on those open roads. Data show that from 2006-2008, 68 percent of the speed-related fatal crashes occurred in what the department deems rural areas (less than 5,000 population). Other behaviors that contribute to fatalities on rural roads include less seat belt use, a higher incidence of drinking and driving, and more texting and cell phone use. Another issue may be lack of familiarity with rural roads. The state reports that 40 percent of rural road fatalities involve motorists who are not from the counties in which the accidents occurred.

And for those in rural crashes, emergency services response times are naturally longer relative to urban areas, which can also increase the fatality rate.

To be sure, the type of roads in rural areas also play a part in the high fatality rate, as many are two-lane roads, often with poor lighting at night, poor sight lines and reduced visibility.

Minnesota's busted budget makes it unlikely that major infrastructure improvements are coming soon. What can be fixed immediately, however, is driver behavior.