With just two months left in the year, Missouri transportation and public safety officials are warning drivers to take extra precautions on the road. They say the final stretch of the year is typically the deadliest for motorists, driven by holiday travel, shorter days and more impaired driving.
So far, 745 people have died on Missouri roads in 2025 — about 1% fewer than this time last year. But officials fear that number could climb sharply as the holiday season begins.
Missouri Department of Transportation deputy director and chief engineer Eric Schroeter said driver behavior remains the biggest factor in roadway deaths.
“Two a day, every day on average, lose their lives on our highway system,” Schroeter said. “That’s unacceptable for Missouri.”
The Missouri State Highway Patrol is stepping up enforcement through initiatives like Operation CARE, which targets risky driving, and the new STORM team — short for Strategic Traffic Operations and Rapid Mobilization — focused on distracted and impaired drivers. In its first month, STORM made more than 1,200 stops and issued more than 850 citations.
Capt. Scott White of the Highway Patrol said most crashes trace back to simple mistakes.
“The vast majority of these crashes happen because somebody made a mistake, somebody was doing something they weren’t supposed to be doing,” White said. “People don’t believe it’s going to happen to them — until it does.”
Cole County EMS Chief Eric Hoy said first responders often see the worst outcomes.
“Despite all the advances in pre-hospital medicine, certain injuries are unfortunately not survivable,” Hoy said. “That’s why creating the habit of buckling up and putting the phone down every time matters.”
MoDOT officials say they’re expanding safety measures ahead of the holiday rush but emphasize that preventing fatalities ultimately depends on driver choices.