Summer and nice weather means road trips with friends and leaving Pullman for vacation. This travel in and out of Pullman may soon become safer for drivers — but not in the near future.

State Route 26, a road running east and west in and out of the Palouse and a popular route for travelers headed to the west side of the state, has proven to be an incredibly dangerous road, infamous for collisions.

The problems with the road don’t stem from any inherent danger or lack of maintenance, rather, the increased traffic it faces when thousands of students from WSU and UI filter out of the Palouse creates havoc on the roadway and makes for a risky drive — an issue which must be addressed immediately, as the route has now been outdated for years.

As reported by The Daily Evergreen April 8, the discussion has finally begun within the Washington Department of Transportation to move toward fixing the issues with the roadway.

However, any sort of construction is not expected to start for about nine years.

The question is asked over and over again: how many more drivers must lose their lives before higher-ups recognize the severity of this issue?

As reported by the Spokesman-Review Nov. 22, 2015, two WSU students were killed this past year in similar vehicle-related accidents.  This news is all too fresh in many students’ minds.

This news shook the WSU community, especially as many saw the deaths to be easily avoidable if the roadways were better prepared for the volume of traffic they are subjected to every time students leave for breaks.

Not to mention that maintaining and establishing roads to accommodate the travel of citizens is one of the basic functions of government, and one that huge amounts of tax dollars are allotted to every year.

Unfortunately, the bottom right corner of the state seems to be out of sight and out of mind for those distributing highway funding.

As summer vacation grows closer and trips out of Pullman will be had by many, it is essential that students remember this drive is not a walk in the park, whether you’re taking a trip back to the west side or elsewhere.

Though the public service announcements denouncing texting and driving, drinking and driving and distracted driving may seem overstated at this point, they are incredibly crucial — especially when crowded roadways are thrown into the equation.

Until the Department of Transportation makes these moves to improve the safety of our roadways, we, as drivers, must make an effort to take these issues into our own hands.

Commitment to safe driving and avoiding driving in unfavorable conditions are essential for not only your own safety, but the safety of other drivers.

If we do our part as safe drivers avoiding collisions and following the laws of the road, we will also reduce the stress placed on other drivers while making the trek.

Keep these things in mind while traveling out of town for this upcoming break, and continue to look to demand safer driving conditions from your tax dollars.