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WITH EACH day seeming to bring a new and terrifying road-related danger, there was some encouraging news announced last week: Fatalities from motor vehicle crashes fell again in 2009, to a record-low rate of 1.16 deaths per 100 million vehicles miles traveled.

I was a little surprised, since a record low rate was previously set in 2008, when gas cost $4 a gallon for a big chunk of the summer. But crash deaths fell by 8.9 percent in 2009 from 2008.

Safety features in newer cars--side-impact air bags and electronic stability control--could play a role, as well as seat belt laws that are enforced as primary violations, meaning a driver can be pulled over just for not wearing a seat belt in 30 states and Washington, D.C. (It's still a secondary violation in Virginia.)

All of this is little comfort to the loved ones of the 33,963 people that died in traffic crashes last year.

Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood said he was grateful for the decrease in deaths, but felt more work needs to be done.

"I am also disturbed that we are still talking about nearly 34,000 preventable deaths a year," LaHood wrote on his blog, The Fast Lane, at fastlane.dot.gov. "There are still too many people dying in traffic accidents every year. Just too many."

Dear Kelly: On State Route 205 in King George, if westbound traffic reaches the intersection with U.S. 301 first, there is no green signal for eastbound traffic until a full cycle of U.S. 301 is completed again. Often in the mornings, I sit at the eastbound intersection even when no traffic crosses on U.S. 301, and I have reached the intersection while westbound traffic is crossing U.S. 301 and its cycle is not yet completed. Is it permissible to cycle both eastbound and westbound on 205 before going to the 301 cycle?

--Tim Armentrout, Spotsylvania

The traffic signal does let eastbound and westbound traffic proceed before going back to U.S. 301, but you are pulling up to the stop bar at the wrong moment. I'm sorry. I imagine this is even more frustrating if it's happening before sunrise.