HARRISBURG, PA — The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is asking motorists across the Commonwealth to share their driving habits and safety concerns as officials point to continued declines in traffic fatalities and push to accelerate that trend.
PennDOT on Tuesday opened an online traffic safety survey, available through February 28 at pa.gov/dotsafety, aimed at gathering public input on behaviors that contribute to crashes, injuries, and deaths on Pennsylvania roadways. The feedback will help shape future safety programs under the Shapiro Administration, which officials say is investing nearly $30 million annually in traffic safety efforts.
The voluntary survey asks participants about seat belt use, impaired driving, speeding, distracted driving, and safety issues involving bicyclists, pedestrians, and motorcyclists. PennDOT said the responses will inform how federal grant funding is directed to education and enforcement programs statewide.
The outreach comes as Pennsylvania records some of its lowest traffic fatality numbers in nearly a century. PennDOT reported last spring that 1,127 people were killed on state highways in 2024, the second-lowest total since recordkeeping began in 1928 and a decline of 82 deaths from the previous year. While final figures for 2025 are still being compiled, preliminary data indicates fatalities have fallen for a second consecutive year, a result officials credit to expanded safety initiatives.
“While a decrease in fatalities is certainly good news, we need your help to continue this downward trend,” PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll said in a statement. “Even one life lost is one too many, but we’ll only get to zero with your help.”
PennDOT officials said similar surveys in prior years have directly influenced policy and messaging. Results from the 2023 survey showed many drivers were motivated by family considerations to make safer choices behind the wheel, prompting a new media campaign focused on the impact of dangerous driving on loved ones. The campaign, featuring state police troopers delivering a knock at the door, is scheduled to return in May during the national “Click It or Ticket” enforcement period.
The current survey is anonymous and takes about five minutes to complete. PennDOT said full 2025 traffic fatality data will be released this spring.
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