Goal for Utah roads is 'Zero Fatalities'

As a mother, Honey Bee Brenchley didn't expect to be dressing her 25-year-old son, combing his hair or deciding whether he should wear shoes or just socks in his casket.

She didn't expect her son, Courtney Florence, to die in a violent auto accident, alone, and without his loved ones. She didn't think he'd make a choice to not wear his seat belt and drive while tired.

But that, she says, is the reality she has lived with since Aug. 20, 2004.

"It wasn't anything we did not do as a family," said Brenchley, standing next to her daughter, Dallas, 12. "Courtney chose not to wear his seat belt that night."

In 2005, approximately 208 people made a similar choice, deciding to not wear a seat belt or to be improperly restrained when they were involved in an auto accident. And like Florence, they died on Utah roadways, according to state statistics.

To help cut the number of deaths each year on the highway — and to prevent families from being forced to make heartbreaking decisions like those Brenchley had to make — several state agencies have joined in a new educational campaign called "Zero Fatalities."

As the title of the campaign suggests, the goal is to have zero fatalities on Utah roads. In March, the Utah Department of Transportation will launch a $300,000 advertising campaign to promote "Zero Fatalities." Money for the campaign is coming from federal safety campaigns. The Department of Public Safety, AAA and other groups are supporting the campaign.

"We'll do our part, but we need you to do your part," said UDOT deputy director Carlos Braceras during a campaign kick-off event on Friday. "Every person who gets behind the wheel of a vehicle is responsible, not only for himself, but for every other person on the roadway."

A preliminary analysis of state fatality data shows that 282 people died in automobile crashes in 2005. Of those people, 77 died in speed-related crashes, 21 were DUI-related deaths, while 25 were fatigue-related.

About 25 percent of the people killed in crashes in 2005 were aged 20 to 29. Almost 66 percent of the crashes were in rural areas, and the majority of those killed, 186, were male.

Of all the fatal crashes, 233 occurred with dry road conditions, with only 37 on wet or snowy roads.

UDOT, the Department of Public Safety and other agencies say educating the public about these fatalities and how to drive safely can lead to zero fatalities on Utah roadways. Two fatal crashes have already been tallied this year in Utah.