House District 4 is a new district created as the result of the decennial census. The heart of the district is the peninsula in Rehoboth Bay that includes Long Neck but it also extends a little west of Route 24. (If you are not 100% sure whether you live in House District 4, you can search here using your address.) If you live in this district your choice on November 8 to represent you in the Delaware House of Representatives is between Amy Fresh, Jeff Hilovsky and Keegan Worley. Using a multiple choice format, we asked these three candidates to share their views on four questions related to traffic safety in Delaware. Their answers are here:
1) In May the 151st Delaware General Assembly voted unanimously to approve the Everyone Gets Home resolution (SCR 94). SCR94 called for reducing traffic fatalities in Delaware to no more than 100 people each year and tasked state agencies to meet that goal by 2025.
Fresh: “Progress in reducing traffic fatalities is possible and elected state officials have an important role to play in holding state agencies accountable for meeting traffic safety goals.“
Hilovsky: “Progress in reducing traffic fatalities is possible and elected state officials have an important role to play in holding state agencies accountable for meeting traffic safety goals.“
Worley: “Progress in reducing traffic fatalities is possible and elected state officials have an important role to play in holding state agencies accountable for meeting traffic safety goals.“
2) There is significant disagreement among transportation professionals about how limited resources for government traffic safety efforts should be allocated.
Fresh: “All types of crashes need to be addressed but greater resources should be allocated to reducing fatal crash types compared to property damage and injury crashes.”
Hilovsky: “All types of crashes need to be addressed but greater resources should be allocated to reducing fatal crash types compared to property damage and injury crashes.”
Worley: “All types of crashes need to be addressed but greater resources should be allocated to reducing fatal crash types compared to property damage and injury crashes.”
3) Traffic safety professionals often describe their work in terms of the ‘3 Es’ (education, enforcement and engineering).
Fresh: “All 3 “E”s – education, enforcement and engineering – are indispensable and we need to do more of each in order to make progress in solving Delaware’s traffic safety crisis.”
Hilovsky: “All 3 “E”s – education, enforcement and engineering – are indispensable and we need to do more of each in order to make progress in solving Delaware’s traffic safety crisis.”
Worley: “All 3 “E”s – education, enforcement and engineering – are indispensable and we need to do more of each in order to make progress in solving Delaware’s traffic safety crisis.”
4) Many of Delaware’s deadliest roads – including Dupont Highway, Coastal Highway, Kirkwood Highway and Pulaski Highway – have become deadlier over time as commercial development along those roads has increased the number of potential conflicts between vehicles, and between vehicles and pedestrians, entering and exiting driveways and changing lanes either to enter or after exiting driveways.
Fresh: “DelDOT should partner with counties to consolidate driveway entrances and exits onto busy, high-speed, multi-lane highways.”
Hilovsky: “DelDOT should partner with counties to consolidate driveway entrances and exits onto busy, high-speed, multi-lane highways.”
Worley: “DelDOT should partner with counties to consolidate driveway entrances and exits onto busy, high-speed, multi-lane highways.”
5) Is there anything else about your record as an elected official, your experience or your views that you think is relevant to improving traffic safety in Delaware for the people you wish to represent in the 152nd General Assembly?
Worley: “In Sussex County, we have seen a large number of individuals move to this area. As a result, we have seen a significant number of new homes and developments built. I believe that state officials need to partner and work with county officials to put pressure on these developers to make the entrances of roadways safer for both walking pedestrians and cyclists.
“Additionally, we have beautiful bike trails in Sussex County. I believe that we need to continue to upkeep these trails and make them accessible and beautiful for our travelers. I believe that we additionally need to continue working to extend the Lewes/Georgetown bike trail because it will not only offer another beautiful trail for Delawareans to use, but another method of transportation as a East to West avenue in the southern part of the state, which already sees a high amount of car traffic.”