In the wake of two pedestrian traffic deaths in 2025, the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) says it’s open to being part of a working group with Teton County and Town of Jackson officials to improve safety.
WYDOT District Engineer John Eddins assured county commissioners in a Feb. 2 meeting that workers had already started looking at data to better understand intersection safety.
“From a district level we’re very committed to it,” Eddins said in reference to the working group, “and I’ve had good conversations with our executive leadership.”
The comments came during a meeting to take community input on the state transportation’s annual formation of its six-year plan for fixes like bridge construction and pavement replacement. Details of the working group have yet to be established.
County Pathways Coordinator Brian Schilling said in an interview that details would be up to elected, but the group would likely involve representatives from the county, town, WYDOT and interest groups.
WYDOT officials came to Jackson after the town and county sent letters asking for more cooperation in response to separate accidents on and near state roads in which vehicles struck community members Helga Tesar and Flo McCall, both of whom died.
Public comments ranged widely from calls for more roundabouts to disagreements over whether more pathways in downtown Wilson would make interactions between pedestrians and cars safer or more dangerous.
Direct references to community deaths were absent from the in-person meeting.
But Tesar was struck while crossing Broadway at the downtown intersection with Glenwood St. There, bright Town of Jackson pedestrian flags are seen by some as a Band-Aid in a tourist town where high volumes of cars and pedestrians need better solutions.
A lot of time and effort has already gone into identifying problem areas, said Sam Petri with Friends of Pathways. His organization’s suggestions for WYDOT include changing light timing and better paint on Highway 89 intersections through town, or fixing the flashing lights near the crossing at the hotel Mountain Modern.
“We already know where the risks are, and we already know what works,” Petri told commissioners and WYDOT. “What’s needed now is targeted implementation.”
In an interview, Petri pointed to picking the low-hanging fruit of the town-and-county-managed Safety Action Plan, adopted by town and county leaders in 2025. They also adopted a “Vision Zero” policy 2024 with the goal of zero traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2040.
The working group could help prioritize ideas in that plan, Schilling said, acting as a “guiding hand on implementation.”
“So it’s not just a plan that sits on the shelf,” he said.
While WYDOT staff were encouraging of local input, one big caveat hung over the conversations of what was possible: money.
“It’s hard to be optimistic when I don’t see any wiggle or increase in the federal highway bill because,” Eddins said. “We’ve been under the same 18 cents per gallon for federal fuel tax since 1993.” Public comment on the State Transportation Improvement Plan is available on the department’s website and does not close.
