Medford Had 5th Highest Car Crash Fatalities In Oregon, Police Target School Zone Speed Limits
MEDFORD, Ore — A targeted speed enforcement operation will be conducted by the Medford Police Department in school zones across Medford between September 9 and September 13.
Aimed at ensuring drivers stick to speed limits within designated school zones the initiative seeks to enhance the safety of students as the academic year resumes.
Medford Police Target School Speed Zones
Multiple schools will be monitored as officers monitor different school zones each day. The following school zones are scheduled for enforcement:
- September 9: Logos School and Kids Unlimited
- September 10: Kennedy Elementary, Hedrick Middle School, and Lone Pine Elementary
- September 11: McLoughlin Middle School and Oakdale Middle School.
- September 12: North Medford High School (NMHS) and South Medford High School (SMHS).
- September 13: NMHS, SMHS, as well as Kennedy, Hedrick, Oakdale, McLoughlin, and Lone Pine.
When children are present or flashing lights are activated during school days from 7 AM to 5 PM, the speed limits in school zones are 20 mph.
Drivers are urged by the Medford Police Department to stay alert and stay within speed limits. Compliance helps ensure the safety of Oregon’s children as they travel to and from school.
Oregon Cities With The Most Car Accidents
Medford is one of the top five cities where the most car accidents occur. A report by Goldberg & Loren Personal injury lawyers indicates that from 2020 to 2021 the cities with the highest accident rates were:
| RANK | CITY | TOTAL ACCIDENTS | INJURIES | FATAL ACCIDENTS | FATALITIES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portland | 6,430 | 4,928 | 59 | 63 |
| 2 | Salem | 2,486 | 21 | 22 | |
| 3 | Gresham | 1,007 | 938 | 11 | 11 |
| 4 | Eugene | 1,404 | 996 | 9 | 10 |
| 5 | Medford | 1,131 | 824 | 8 | 8 |
| 6 | Hillsboro | 1,107 | 1,083 | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | Beaverton | 1,431 | 1,240 | 2 | 2 |
| 8 | Bend | 902 | 557 | 4 | 4 |
Combined with local driving habits- such as speeding- population density, infrastructure, and traffic volume also contribute to the number of car accidents in Oregon.
Car Accidents In Oregon
An annual report is compiled by the Oregon Department of Transportation of accidents on state highways and Oregon State Police are generally tasked with investigating car crashes.
An Oregon Transportation Safety Dashboard- a combination of state data, has also been released by the Oregon Health Authority (OHA). The dashboard reflects that traffic deaths and injuries increased by 73% from 2010 to 2022 and the pandemic did not slow down traffic deaths despite reduced hospital visits.
An epidemiologist in the state’s injury and violence prevention program, Dagan Wright, confirmed that a grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is given to OHA to address injury prevention issues such as traffic safety.
Wright said OHA studies aren’t limited to car collisions but include pedestrians, cyclists, boaters, and recreational vehicles.
The OHA data also indicated that faster vehicle speeds and so-called “high profile” vehicles- such as trucks and SUVs built higher off the ground, play a role. The roads have become deadlier for more vulnerable people such as cyclists, pedestrians, and motorcycle riders.
Traffic deaths did not slow down even though hundreds of workplaces, restaurants, and schools were closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of Oregonians who died from transportation-related injuries remained similar from 2019 to 2020, rising to 597 from 530 in 2021 and then again to 606 in 2022.
Speed plays a crucial role in traffic deaths. In rural Oregon, vehicular speed remains high and the Legislature passed a bipartisan bill in 2015 increasing speed limits on state highways across parts of Oregon. In the years that followed, traffic fatalities rose.
Wright said, “Every death is significant, no matter how small the count. The event has reverberations for everybody.”