Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy asked all governors to participate in the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Safe Arterials for Everyone through Reliable Operations and Distraction-Reducing Strategies—SAFE ROADS—initiative.
Over half of roadway deaths occur on these non-freeway roads.
Duffy told the governors that 39,345 people died on these roads in 2024. That’s a decrease of 3.8% from 2024, but still unacceptable.
“Roads are for safety, not political messages or artwork. Today I am calling on governors in every state to ensure that roadways, intersections, and crosswalks are kept free of distractions,” said Duffy. “Far too many Americans die each year to traffic fatalities to take our eye off the ball. USDOT stands ready to help communities across the country make their roads safer and easier to navigate.”
No more rainbow walkways. No more BLM messages. Nothing.
Duffy requested each state’s department of transportation provide him with its “metropolitan planning organizations, use available safety data, analysis, and assessments to develop a list of arterial segments, including intersections, with the highest safety, operational, or compliance concerns that will be addressed by the end of Fiscal Year 2026” within 60 days.
The goals include:
In 2020, then-New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio helped activists paint Black Lives Matter on 5th Avenue in front of Trump Tower.
Then in 2024, Washington teenagers faced felony charges for supposedly vandalizing an LGBT/transgender mural on a road.
I so hope the governors participate. I doubt Illinois, California, and New York will, though.
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