State of Missouri agencies are celebrating a decline in traffic fatalities for the third year in a row.
At press events across the state Tuesday, including Springfield, the Missouri Department of Transportation and Missouri State Highway Patrol said there were 911 deaths on the state’s roadways in 2025 compared to 955 the year before for a 5% drop. The state saw a 14% reduction in roadway deaths over the three-year period. It’s the first time there’s been a three-year decline since 2019.
But Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe said there’s more work to do.
"Every number is a person. Every life lost is a family and a community that's forever changed," he said.
Kehoe said they are asking Missourians to make 2026 the fourth year in a row with lower traffic fatalities.
Becky Allmeroth, chief safety and operations officer for MoDOT, said they've seen a significant increase in pedestrian deaths that stem from traffic accidents.
"We're starting to see people that are in a crash or have a vehicle breakdown that are on the side of the road and make themselves a pedestrian," she said.
If you're ever in that situation, according to Allmeroth, the safest place to be is in your vehicle "that's designed to take a crash, with your seat belt fastened and wait for an emergency responder to come to you."
State officials urged drivers to buckle up, put phones down and reduce speed in work zones.
An updated Show-Me Zero plan was recently launched to decrease roadway deaths even further. It’s a statewide roadmap for reducing traffic fatalities through education, enforcement, engineering and emergency response.
Television ads are running that provide safety tips for motorists.
Christian County Sheriff Brad Cole is chairman of the Traffic Safety Committee for the National Sheriffs Association. He said they work with national organizations, such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Governors Highway Safety Program (GHSP) to make sure states have what they need for traffic safety.
He said they want to "ensure that agencies such as MoDOT and our traffic safety here in Missouri are supported and get what we need."
