State’s highway fatalities spike

By Wyoming News Exchange
August 26, 2025

Highway fatalities last month were some of the highest in at least a decade at 20, only topped by 2020 July deaths. Graph by Anita Duran, Lander Journal.

 

By Sarah Elmquist Squires
The Lander Journal
Via- Wyoming News Exchange

LANDER — Last month was one of the state’s deadliest Julys in recent years; with 20 fatalities on Wyoming roadways, only 2020 surpassed that mark with 21.

And while Wyoming winters can pose some extreme driving hazards, examining data over the last decade shows that fatal crashes tick up in the summer months, when hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to the Cowboy State to soak up the scenic beauty.

“June through August are the busiest months of the year on our Wyoming highways. More traffic equals more opportunities for crashes,” explained Wyoming Department of Transportation Public Relations Specialist Cody Beers. 

He recounted a recent trip to Lander while pulling his camper trailer, when a pickup with New Mexico plates attempted to pass him and nearly caused a head-on crash. It’s an encounter to which many Wyomingites can relate: out-of-state drivers, less familiar with the state’s roadways, creating dangerous situations.

As for July’s uptick in traffic fatalities, the factors aren’t unusual: Five of the 20 total deaths were nonresidents; 13 involved victims who were not wearing seat belts – or helmets in the case of motorcyclists.

And while every death is a tragedy, the statistics offer a lesson in safety: Concrete steps that Wyoming residents can take to stay safe behind the wheel.

 

Bucking the trend

“From my lens, I would say the number-one thing drivers can do is to wear their seat belt,” explained Lt. Colonel Karl Germain, a 20-year veteran with the Wyoming Highway Patrol. “A lot of our crashes in Wyoming tend to be single-vehicle rollover crashes – and the sad reality is we still see a lot of our highway fatalities [involve people without seat belts].”

Fifteen of the 20 fatal crashes last month involved a single vehicle, with 12 unbuckled and one crash in which investigators couldn’t determine whether a seat belt was in use.

Germain said that along with seat belt use, and motorcyclists using helmets, drivers need to eliminate distractions – especially cellphones —  to stay safe on the road.

“Anything that distracts you in that vehicle can cause you to go off the road, overcorrect, collide with a fixed object,” he said.

Beers agreed. 

“Driving is the most dangerous thing that most of us do in our daily lives,” he explained. “Wearing seat belts is a must; driving defensively is required; driving at or below the speed limit is the law; and removing distractions (cell phones, eating, putting on makeup, wandering eyes) are key to survival.”

As kids strap on their backpacks and make their way to school this fall, drivers have another reason to be extra cautious on the road. 

“Remember, when a bus’ red lights are flashing, and its stop sign is out, all lanes must stop,” noted Riverton School Resource Officer Tyler Larsen. “And please watch out for our crossing guards; they are easy to spot wearing high-vis vests and holding stop signs.”

Local law enforcement agencies step up their patrolling for the beginning of school, keeping an eye out for the area’s littlest pedestrians and asking drivers to keep them in mind, too. 

Finally, it can’t be understated: Don’t drink and drive.

 

Fremont County takes the lead

In years past, Fremont County has made the headlines as one of the most dangerous counties in the nation when it comes to per-capita deaths on the road that involve alcohol and other intoxicating substances. Prevention has become a major focus in the region, and those efforts are paying dividends.

The Fremont County DUI Task Force is comprised of the WHP, Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, and the Lander, Riverton, Shoshoni, Dubois and Wind River police departments, and it’s aimed at reducing fatal crashes through enforcement of impaired driving and seat belt laws. 

So far this year, the task force has arrested 42 impaired drivers, written 499 speeding citations and made 1,749 traffic stops during six enforcement operations.

“Overall, alcohol and substance-related traffic deaths have plummeted in our county, thanks in part to exhaustive enforcement, highway safety message marketing, and more people wearing seat belts – more than 90% of Fremont County residents have been buckled during the last two years of seat belt surveys,” Beers explained.

Fremont County also has a SafeRide program offered by the Wind River Transportation Authority. It’s a free service offered on Friday and Saturdays from 6 p.m. to midnight, giving people a lift within Riverton or Lander city limits. Residents who call 307-856-WRTA during operating hours have the safe choice made for them.

Another effort undertaken by law enforcement and highway officials is education, especially geared toward young drivers. Setting an example — and making safe driving habits like wearing a seat belt and not using a cellphone — are a high priority.

WHP provides classes for young people as part of its Alive at 25 program, helping to hand down those safe driving skills to the state’s youngest drivers, and law enforcement officials are frequent guests in classrooms across Wyoming.

“Education gets the young drivers thinking about decisions that they make before they get behind the wheel,” Germain noted. “Obviously, education is one aspect of it, but the other aspect of it is enforcement and being visible, patrolling on our state highways.

“We use a data-driven approach to target areas where we’re seeing an uptick in fatalities and bad-injury crashes …,” he continued. “Traffic enforcement does change behavior. You still can’t prevent every fatality on the highway; the goal is when you start seeing an uptick is to find a way to change that trend.

“You do that through education, high visibility, enforcement, utilizing data for where to put resources,” Germain said. “Those three things can help curb the trend that we’re on.”

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