Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – March 27, 2026 – Senator Anthony Williams (SD-8) and Rep. Morgan Cephas (HD-192) recently introduced legislation that would require the City of Philadelphia to develop a pilot program to address the problem of traffic accidents. The bill would provide for a register of licensed car repair shops and require notifications, which would enable faster identification of people who have fled the scene of a crime.
“Every year so many people are injured or tragically killed in road accidents, we strive to hold individuals accountable and bring justice to the families and victims of these terrible crimes. But ultimately we want to save lives. This legislation, started as a pilot in Philadelphia but with the larger goal of helping statewide, will put drivers on notice that leaving the scene of a crime will not work, while also providing us with the data we need to understand how a broader statewide program can be implemented passed,” said Senator Williams.
The legislation would provide for a three-year pilot program in the city of Philadelphia to create a uniform registry of auto repair shops licensed to operate in the city. The Philadelphia Police Department will be required to notify auto repair shops in the event of a traffic accident with identifying information about the available vehicle. Owners of car repair shops will then be obliged to notify the police if they suspect that their vehicles are involved in an attempt to flee the scene in order to repair the vehicle.
“We cannot accept the reality that people are dying on our streets without an immediate, coordinated response. The updated Jay Alerts proposal reflects the strategic collaboration needed to increase urgency, awareness and prevention. I am committed to working with advocates and partners to move this issue forward because safer streets mean saving lives,” said Rep. Cephas.
“We are very grateful to Senator Williams and Representative Cephas for their leadership on this issue,” said Jasmine Hoffman, co-founder of Jay Alert and street safety advocate. “This year will mark 10 years since we lost my niece Jayanna Powell, and 9 years of advocating for Jay Alert legislation. During that time, fatal hit-and-runs have increased and more families have had to deal with the trauma of not knowing who killed their loved ones. It’s time to do more to stop hit-and-runs, and this pilot program is an encouraging first step.”
The Jay Alerts Act was first introduced by Senator Williams in 2017 in honor of Jayanna Powell, an 8-year-old girl who in 2016 was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver while walking home from school. The driver tried to evade police by taking the vehicle several counties away for repairs. Ultimately, the owner of the workshop read the press reports and notified the police, who detained the driver.
Background:
According to a March 2026 research report by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 15% of all police-reported crashes in the U.S. in 2023 involved a driver, resulting in “more than 240,000 injuries (10% of all crash injuries) and 2,872 deaths (7% of all crash fatalities, the highest rate on record).” The report found that from 2017 to 2023, a total of 8,135 people were killed in hit-and-runs in Pennsylvania, with 22% of hit-and-runs involving pedestrians or cyclists resulting in death during that period. The report also pointed out that drivers may be less likely to flee if measures are put in place to make them believe they will be caught.
According to the Pennsylvania State Police Information Access Dashboard, there were 8,038 traffic crashes in Pennsylvania in 2025. PennDOT data shows that in 2024, 72 motorist crashes resulted in fatalities and 345 resulted in earnest injuries. The Philadelphia Traffic Victims Dashboard shows that there were 28 traffic fatalities in 2025. A year earlier, nearly half of pedestrian deaths and earnest injuries in Philadelphia occurred as a result of hit-and-runs.
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