COVID-19 cuts number of Florida traffic crashes in half.
Florida traffic accidents have been cut in half due to coronavirus quarantine.
Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles officials and the county’s transportation planning agency announced that the number of traffic crashes in Florida dropped by 50% in April compared to the same time last year.
With residents holed up at home, working remotely, and running fewer errands, rush hour traffic has decreased considerably. Shuttered bars and restaurants have led to fewer drunk drivers on the highways. Florida drivers were involved in 16,200 crashes last month compared to 33,690 in April last year, according to data from the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
Local media report the dip started in March as the pandemic spread. Florida’s crash data showed a 25 percent decrease in March compared to last year.
According to Whit Blanton, executive director of Forward Pinellas, the county’s transportation planning agency, “The fewer people out driving, combined with the fewer vehicle miles traveled, the less opportunity for people to do bad things.”
Fewer cars on the road has led to fewer traffic collisions in the latest months. However, the month of April is not over yet and it is really too soon to tell how much of an effect the coronavirus has had on our roadways, but that traffic control officers have noticed a significant decrease in crashes.
According to News Observer.