JACKSON, Wyo. — Jackson’s Town Council and the Teton County Board of County Commissioners unanimously passed a joint motion to direct staff to draft a letter to Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) regarding crosswalks and pedestrian safety. The letter is to be presented to the boards at the Jan. 20 Town Council meeting for review.
The conversation gained momentum following two pedestrian deaths due to vehicle collisions that occurred in 2025, one of which took place at a busy intersection in downtown Jackson.
During public comment, 10-year resident Dale Hoyt of East Jackson took the stand and implored for improved safety infrastructure at road crossings: “You may know me from some angry emails I sent in recently about pedestrian safety in crosswalks,” Hoyt began. “I wanted to take a moment to speak with all of you in person, especially after the most recent accident. … I’ve seen so many near-accidents and close-misses. Something was going to happen either sooner or later. Sadly, eventually it did.”
Commissioner Wes Gardner agreed with Hoyt and suggested a discussion regarding crosswalk safety and forging a productive path forward. He mentioned that he has also seen a lot of near-misses in pedestrian crosswalks during his tenure in Jackson.
“What happened in the last month — we lost a member of our community,” Gardner said during the meeting. “I feel the weight of that.”
State highways that run through Jackson (such as US89/191, which passes through the center of town before continuing north toward Grand Teton National Park) are under the jurisdiction of WYDOT.
Talks about improved transportation safety needs have been in motion for some time now. Initiatives as a result of the Safe Streets for All (SS4A) program identified a “high injury network” of roads that see a disproportionate number of crashes resulting in death or serious injury in Teton County.
Teton County Pathways Coordinator Brian Schilling said that the high injury network is not a “perfect tool” to identify problem areas. He continued by stating a lot of high-traffic areas are anecdotally problem spots, and that it is no surprise that areas with lots of vehicular movement are going to show up in the high injury network.
Teton County Transportation Manager Dr. Charlotte Frei told Buckrail that the letter being drafted will contain a variety of suggestions for improvements to infrastructure based on findings from the SS4A program. She hopes for WYDOT to work with the Town and County to make these changes.
Beyond infrastructure changes to improve safety, Frei told Buckrail that it’s important to note that ultimately transportation safety is in the hands of the person driving the vehicle.
