While they are not as common as regular vehicle crashes, when a horse-drawn buggy is hit by car, or when the horse is just spooked by one, the results are likely to be deadly. They are tragedies we are starting to see more, and a solution will need all sides working together.

“Sometimes, you know, if a vehicle is traveling at a high rate of speed, it can be sometimes hard because you approach such a slow moving object so fast,” New York State Police Public Information Officer Trooper Jennifer Jiron said.

Specific information is hard to come by, but the message is and always will be, slow down and pay attention.

“You can look down for a split second and then look up, and you can see an Amish buggy in front of you. By the time you approach it, it's too late. The outcome is catastrophic,” Jiron said.

When cars hit Amish buggies, the aftermath can be devastating. Luckily, in some cases, like recent crashes in Ava and LeRay, no one died. However, accidents like from Georgetown in 2020 and both Ridgeland and Alexandria in 2021, as well as a crash from Louisville just two months ago, have left members of the Amish community burying loved ones.

“It's a lot. It's a lot to process, especially something that could be preventable,” Jiron said.

Preventable. That was the case with one of the most horrific accidents that Jiron has ever been called to.

“It's very tragic,” she said of that crash.

Last year, also in the town of Alexandria, a 1-year-old and a 5-year-old were killed by a driver who would later admit she was distracted and speeding.

“It's somebody’s child, a family member that has lost life. It's important. It matters,” she said.

In most cases, the driver of the vehicle is the one charged or cited with a traffic violation. In New York state, the law says Amish buggies have the same rights as any other vehicle.

“We all share these roads, and we ask that you be diligent and drive careful,” Jiron said.

New York state law also states that Amish buggies have a very clear, orange, reflective triangle on the back. Sometimes, that law is violated. That's why police say conversations with everyone are critical.

“We do reach out to Amish communities and we try to inform them as to what can make them safer, as well as the laws that are put in place,” she said.

Conversations that do and will continue to include lights.

“It would help if if they did have lights. They don't have to,” she added.

Jerome says lanterns could also work as a replacement for lights because of religious beliefs.