It happens nearly every single time I drive home from work at the intersection of Randall Way and Bucklin Hill Road and again just a few yards away at the intersection of Bucklin Hill Road and Silverdale Way.

Sometimes the infractions are just so blatant I would love nothing more than to confront the driver. What’s getting me all wound up? The dangerous drivers that run red lights. I’m not talking about those that enter the intersection on a yellow light, either; no, I’m talking about drivers that aren’t even close to the intersection speeding up and blazing through a light so obviously red it makes my face red in disbelief.

According to the 2008 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Traffic Safety Facts report, there were more than 2.3 million reported intersection-related crashes, resulting in more than 7,770 fatalities and approximately 733,000 injury crashes. That’s back in 2008, folks, and I’m pretty confident the numbers haven’t gone down.

Last week I asked Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Scott Wilson for some numbers specific to Silverdale in 2013. Below is a numerical list of traffic collision investigations for 2013:

• Silverdale Way NW & NW Bucklin Hill Road:  13

• Kitsap Mall Blvd. NW &  NW Randall Way:  12

• Silverdale Way NW &  NW Ridgetop Blvd. / Kitsap Mall Blvd. NW:  11

• Silverdale Way NW &  NW Randall Way:  8

• Silverdale Way NW &  NW Myhre Road:  7

• NW Bucklin Hill Road & Tracyton Blvd. NW / NW Myhre Road:  6

• NW Myhre Road & NW Ridgetop Blvd.:  5

• NW Ridgetop Blvd. & Mickelberry Road NW:  4

• Silverdale Way NW & State Route 303 NW:  3

National Stop on Red Week takes place the first week of August each year. Perhaps Silverdale needs to participate in such an event?

I’m confident that bringing increased awareness to this huge lapse in judgement is needed.

If our community members are interested in immediately creating a safer environment for ourselves, our fellow drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists, etc., I encourage you to do one thing: Obey traffic control devices. In the meantime I’ll continue to slow on yellow lights and pause and look both ways when my light turns green; inevitably there’s at least one car charging through against the light.

You can reach Jessica Ginet at jginet@soundpublishing.com