SC Traffic Deaths Plummet In 2008

The head of South Carolina’s public safety
department credits a sharp decline in traffic deaths to an increase
in people buckling up and more troopers on patrol.
    According to the agency, 894 people died in traffic fatalities
in 2008, as of midnight Tuesday. Numbers for New Year’s Eve weren’t
yet available. That compares to 1,077 deaths in 2007. Traffic
fatalities last hovered around 900 in 1995.
    Director Mark Keel told The State newspaper of Columbia in
Friday’s editions the agency has added 200 troopers over two years,
to 970. Also, federal statistics show 79 percent of drivers and
passengers buckle their seat belts. That’s up 14 percentage points
in five years.