January 05, 2026 | Ya-Marie Sesay | DC News Now
Since the STEER Act was implemented, the Attorney General’s Office has sued 24 of the most dangerous drivers in the District. Combined, those drivers accumulated more than 4,300 traffic violations and over $1.4 million in traffic fines.
“We’re supportive of these kinds of efforts to ensure that drivers who are being dangerous and careless are accountable. And so we appreciate that out of the steer act,” Cheryl Cort with the Coalition for Smarter Growth said.
However, Cort and other advocates said enforcement alone isn’t enough. They said that long-term safety improvements must also include better street design.
“We tend to build overly large roadways that encourage drivers to drive faster, to take turns faster. And all of the speed just is always going to equal additional risk, basically,” Cort said. “We should have protected bike lanes wherever we can, and we should tighten up intersections so that people who are on foot can have shorter distances to cross that roadway. We have a lot of over-designed roadways where there’s a six-lane road. Really doesn’t need to be more than four lanes.”
Advocates said reducing traffic deaths requires a comprehensive approach, from driver behavior to infrastructure and emergency response.