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Overview
Roadway departure is defined as a crash that occurs after a vehicle crosses an edge line or a center line, or otherwise leaves the traveled way. Roadway departure crashes can result in some of the most severe outcomes due to the inherent danger of the event.
The need to prevent fatalities from roadway departure is imperative. From 2014 to 2018, 2,415 fatalities involved roadway departure—64 percent of all traffic fatalities in Kentucky.

Opportunities
This SHSP includes measures to prevent roadway departure crashes, including:

Keeping the vehicle on the road by improving pavement friction, enhancing delineation along horizontal curves, alerting drivers with rumble strips, and improving nighttime visibility.
Providing for safe recovery with clear zones, wider shoulders, and pavement drop-offs.
Curbing driving behaviors, including aggressive, distracted, and impaired driving, that contribute to cars straying from the roadway.

Roadway Departure Goal & Objective Chart

Kentucky has identified Roadway Departure as an emphasis area due to the severity of the problem and opportunity for improvement. A goal of this SHSP is to identify and implement strategies that prevent future roadway departure-related fatalities and serious injuries.
To measure progress toward this goal, an objective has been set to prevent future roadway departure-related fatalities such that the annual total will fall at or below 342 by December 31, 2024.


ROADWAY DEPARTURE: Overlap with other areas (%Fatalities+ Serious Injuries 2014-2018) FusionChartsXT will load here	Roadway Departure Crashes Fatality Rate for KY & Bordering States 2013-17 FusionChartsXT will load here

Roadway Departure:
Fatal & Serious Injury Crashes
(2014-2018)
by Age & Gender

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Impaired Driving: Fatalities & Serious Injuries
by Crash Type

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The driver was Male in
71%
of fatal & serious injury crashes involving Roadway Departure.

35%

of Roadway Departure fatalities
& serious injuries occurred in crashes where Roadway Departure
was also a factor.

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet
Office of Highway Safety
200 Mero Street, Frankfort, KY 40622