Delaware crash data portal now available
By DOVER - Delaware saw a record tying 165 traffic fatalities in 2022, the most since 1988.
So does a new state-operated open crash data portal come at a good time?
“Absolutely,” State Sen. Stephanie Hansen, D-Middletown, said on Thursday.
The arrival was three years in the making after Sen. Hansen sponsored a bill increasing the Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security’s ability to publicly share crash data
For Sen. Hansen, her interest “was in transparency.
“It didn’t seem right to me that the information wasn’t available without going through your legislator.”
The bill originated, Sen. Hansen said, “from within the Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security and Delaware Department of Transportation as there was confusion over which agency controlled the information, what could be shared, and how it could be shared.
“By bringing all of the parties together, we were able to get to a bill that resolved their intergovernmental issues as well as speak to my focus on transparency for the public.”
Publicly available crash data is important to Delawareans because, Sen. Hansen said, “(It) helps us as members of the traveling public in planning our everyday transportation routes and helps us to better advocate for changes to make those routes safer.”
And the way Sen. Hansen sees it, “Distracted driving, inclement weather, speeding and driving under the influence remain the top (safety) issues.”
When to portal was announced via a news release Monday, Safety and Homeland Security Secretary Nathaniel McQueen Jr. said that “The crash data portal helps us give drivers the information they want and it is our hope that with this information, our citizens will be equipped to make safer decisions behind the wheel.
“We know an informed driver is a safer driver.”
The Department of Safety and Homeland Security will compile and share crash statistics.
The portal is available at data.delaware.gov/stories/s/9yvr-c38p.
According to the Delaware Office of Highway Safety there had been 21 traffic fatalities this year through Wednesday, compared to 30 at the same time in 2022.
Other state agencies contributing to the launch were the Office of Highway Safety, Delaware State Police, Department of Transportation, Delaware Department of Technology and Information, Delaware Justice Information System the Delaware Police Chiefs Council.
“Delaware continues to have far too many crashes in our state and sadly we had the most road fatalities in more than 30 years last year,” said Secretary of Transportation Nicole Majeski in the release.
“This new information portal helps us all continue to work toward making our roads safer.”
The portal will be updated monthly and has crash data occurring from 2009 to six months ago.
Through the portal, users can filter crash data and visualize the data in charts, graphs and maps. In addition, applied filters are reflected in dashboard elements, the Department of Safety and Homeland Security said.
An embedded table within the dashboard allows users to export the data, as filter or the entire dataset.
Also, Office of Highway Safety Director Kim Chesser said in the release, her agency “is pleased to be a part of the collaboration with our traffic safety partners to make crash data accessible to the public through the Open Data Portal.
“The portal is another great tool that is vital to the Office of Highway Safety’s mission of identifying and addressing traffic safety priorities.
“Additionally, the portal will enhance our partnerships with community organizations, businesses and sub-grantee participants who share our mission in traffic safety.”
Additional crash information and data is available in the Office of Highway Safety’s annual reports ohs.delaware.gov/reports.shtml and annual safety plan ohs.delaware.gov/reports.shtml .https://ohs.delaware.gov/reports.shtml
Data is also provided in the State Police traffic statistical reports at dsp.delaware.gov/reports/.
