Op-Ed: Increasing Road Safety is a Job for Every Texan

The following op-ed was written by Todd Staples, president of the Texas Oil & Gas Association and former Texas Agriculture Commissioner:

"Everybody goes home." "Nobody gets hurt." These are familiar mantras that form the core of workplace safety culture. But on the roadways of the Permian Basin in West Texas, where research shows that car accidents are twice as likely to be fatal than in the rest of Texas, that safety standard has been tragically out of reach.

A study from the Texas A&M Transportation Institute commissioned by the Permian Road Safety Coalition (PRSC), found that a fatal traffic accident occurs roughly every other day on the roads of West Texas in the heart of the most prolific oil and natural gas fields in the world. Safety is far and away the top priority for the oil and natural gas industry, so I was honored and personally invested in teaming up with local leaders, law enforcement, first responders and local companies when invited to serve as an advisory board member in support of the life-saving work of the PRSC.

Established in 2015, the PRSC is comprised of oil and natural gas exploration and production, midstream, transportation and service companies who saw a need to improve road safety and transportation infrastructure across the 27-country region of the Permian Basin. The PRSC is a shining example of what government officials and industry leaders can do when they work together. Members of the PRSC, and a host of associations and local entities, have worked with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to prioritize infrastructure improvements. We are thankful to TxDOT and state leaders like Governor Abbott who saw the importance of allocating $676 million for roads in the Permian. It makes sense since $3.3 billion was paid into the State Highway Fund from oil and natural gas production severance taxes in 2023.

The PRSC also convenes forums and hosts training opportunities throughout the year to share and advance best practices and to educate local communities about their important role in improving road safety. Just last month, the Texas Oil & Gas Association (TXOGA) and TXOGA Workers' Comp Safety Group partnered with PRSC to host their latest Road Safety Luncheon Series in Andrews, Texas. Attendees heard critical updates from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) as well as former Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick (R-Midland) and State Senator Kevin Sparks (R- Midland), who described their efforts to improve safety in the Permian Basin by prioritizing transportation and infrastructure funding to meet growing population and industrial needs.

For our part, in addition to our work with the PRSC, TXOGA strives to advance workplace safety through our Workers' Compensation Safety Group with Texas Mutual, which offers free safety training and materials covering everything from driving safety, controlling struck-by incidents, chemical safety, and general rig inspection resources. Members can also work with Texas Mutual's safety services team to craft policies and programs that fit their individual needs. Year after year, members of our Safety Group collectively earn millions of dollars in dividends from Texas Mutual for prioritizing workplace safety and keeping the group's loss ratio low. Their most recent dividends topped $3.8 million in May.

Also last month, TXOGA's Workers' Compensation Safety Group launched a new safety initiative, TXOGA Safety Talks, a bi-monthly email newsletter which covers critical workplace safety resources related to managing traffic flow around drilling sites, safe driving practices in the oilfield, driver fatigue prevention strategies, and equipment inspection and maintenance guidelines.

Together, these dedicated safety efforts are making a measurable impact. According to the PRSC's latest report, traffic accident fatalities decreased by 20.4 percent from 2022 to 2023 in 22 Permian-area counties, including two in New Mexico. By comparison, across Texas, accident fatalities decreased by 3.9 percent. But the numbers in West Texas are still too high. Just in the first six months of 2024, Texas DPS investigated 49 crashes that claimed 58 lives in the Permian.

We wholeheartedly support the PRSC's community outreach campaign, "Goal Zero: A Day Without Accidents," and recognize that continued progress will take a collective effort to achieve. Each and every one of us has an important role to play in keeping our roads and residents safe to ensure that everyone goes home, and nobody gets hurt.