Deaths on Virginia highways reached 16-year low in 2008

Four people died during the New Year’s holiday weekend, but state police say the number of fatalities in the state last year dropped to a 16-year low.

Across the state, 808 people died in crashes on the state’s highways, including 73 pedestrians, according to a state police news release.

Authorities expressed concern last year when the state finished 2007 with 1,026 fatalities. Troopers tapped partnerships with traffic advocates and state agencies such as the Virginia Department of Transportation and Department of Motor Vehicles to launch safety education programs and also announced numerous special patrols.

State police couldn’t point to any one reason for the decline last year.

“While there are many factors that contributed to the decline, our desire is to save even more lives in 2009,” Col. W. Steven Flaherty, state police superintendent said in the release.

The number of deaths during the New Year’s weekend was the lowest in a decade, the release says.

Of the four people killed, three were driving and one was passenger, state police said. Alcohol was a factor in one of the crashes and none of the people killed wore a seatbelt.

Six people died during the Christmas holiday weekend, state police said. During the 2007 Christmas holidays, seven people died on the state’s highways.