Portland saw spike in young people killed in car crashes in 2023

More people 18 or younger died in Portland car crashes in 2023 than the previous three years combined, according to Portland Bureau of Transportation data.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — More people 18 or younger died in Portland car crashes in 2023 than the previous three years combined, according to Portland Bureau of Transportation data.

PBOT Safety Section Manager Dana Dickman told the Portland City Council that seven people between the ages of 11 and 18 were killed in automobile crashes in the city of Portland last year. Six people 18 or younger died in car crashes in Portland between 2020 and 2022.

“We have been fortunate in Portland to not see many people 18 and younger being killed in traffic crashes over the last 10 years,” Dickman said…“One year does not make a trend, but that is a deeply concerning data point from the last year.”

The youths killed in 2023 include Kamareon Smith (13), Onesty Jones (16), Ryan Ambrose (11), Hannah Fetters (18), Grace Fetters (18), Jose Ortiz-Mendez (18) and McKenzie Libro (18). All of the victims were either driving or passengers of a motor vehicle during the fatal crashes.

KOIN 6's Joelle Jones reported on Wednesday that Portland’s traffic death toll hit a record high in 2023. Traffic deaths have consistently increased in recent years, despite the City of Portland’s “Vision Zero” initiative, which was created in 2015 to reduce traffic deaths.

Sixty-nine people were killed in traffic crashes in Portland in 2023. Of the 69 people killed, 32 were in vehicles, 11 were on motorcycles, 24 were pedestrians and two were bicyclists.