Senate District 6 includes Milton, Lewes, Rehoboth Beach and Dewey Beach. (If you are not 100% sure whether you live in Senate District 6, you can search here using your address.) If you live in this district your choice on November 8 to represent you in the Delaware Senate is between Gwendolyn Jones, Russ Huxtable and Representative Steve Smyk. Using a multiple choice format, we asked these candidates to share their views on four questions related to traffic safety in Delaware. Ms. Jones did not respond but Mr. Huxtable’s and Representative Smyk’s 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.
Huxtable: “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.“
Smyk: “Traffic safety should be DelDOT’s top priority. If traffic safety goals are unmet, DelDOT’s capital program should be reoriented and reprioritized in order to meet those goals.”
2) There is significant disagreement among transportation professionals about how limited resources for government traffic safety efforts should be allocated.
Huxtable: “Resources should be allocated to reducing all types of crashes (property damage, injury and fatal).“
Smyk: “Resources should be allocated to reducing all types of crashes (property damage, injury and fatal).“
3) Traffic safety professionals often describe their work in terms of the ‘3 Es’ (education, enforcement and engineering).
Huxtable: “All 3 Es – 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.“
Smyk: “All 3 Es – 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.
Huxtable: “DelDOT should partner with counties to consolidate driveway entrances and exits onto busy, high-speed, multi-lane highways.”
Smyk: “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?
Smyk: “I’ve worked with DelDOT in their planning stages and have advocated for all parts of safety and security for trail use. I’ve obtained support from JFC and changed the laws to allow lawmakers to use CTF to purchase vehicles and equipment for emergency medical response on our paths since traditional ambulances can’t safely access. I paid for Lewes FD to have the first all wheel ATV fitted for medical response in DE. Many lawmakers followed that example. I continuously address safety concerns for trails at roadway intersections and am currently gathering information from constituents about the use of higher speed electric vehicles on the path causing pedestrian alarm. I look forward to having Bicycle DE assist me in future negotiations with DelDOT to ensure safety in all categories of bicycle use on and off the designated paths. DMV is in a staffing shortage, however I’ve had dialogue the past few years to address bike safety for new residents in our licensing tests.”