Traffic practically disappeared early on in the pandemic, but there were more serious and deadly accidents.Whether it's speed, recklessness, or other reasons, there have been many serious car accidents over the last 20 months. Maryland State Police said road conditions have been more dangerous."Not only are we having more people dead per collision, we're having higher speeds, more instances of chemical impairment, alcohol or otherwise," said Maryland State Police Trooper Gregory Bunger.Bunger took the 11 News I-Team along as he patrolled Interstate 695. He described what he has seen since the pandemic first started and now that traffic has picked up. "We're still seeing extreme speeds over 100 mph, lots of reckless operation, tailgating, cutting people off," Bunger said.Troopers have seen drivers using the shoulder as a passing lane."Someone like that who has committed a violation not only is egregious, it is incredibly unsafe and they know it's wrong. They just get tickets," Bunger said.Motorist Brandee Johnson and others said they, too, are noticing wild driving on highways and local streets. "Where is the police and where is this person going?" Marion said.Dashcam video captures drivers clearly making dangerous moves rather than stopping for a red light."I think this is life or death. We're driving a machine at our control and it is life or death," said Kent Island motorist Kasey Ingram.According to the Maryland Department of Transportation, in 2020, the state saw its highest number of deadly crashes in six years due to excessive speed. Even though traffic was down, there were 573 deaths compared to 535 the year before. In an email to the 11 News I-Team, MDOT spokeswoman Whitney Nichels wrote, "While the number of overall crashes and serious injuries decreased in 2020, crashes were more severe, contributing to the rise in roadway fatalities."Proof that speeding and reckless driving are up, Maryland State Police said troopers issued more than 192,000 citations during the first 18 months of the pandemic -- up from 130,000 the previous 18 months."My goal is to be fair with people," Bunger said.Bunger is a collision re-constructionist. He has witnessed the aftermath of serious crashes and said speeding is a major factor. "The fastest I caught was 134," Bunger said.On patrol, he tries to get people to slow down. "They are still going 89," Bunger said.Using flashing lights, he tried to get a driver to pull over, but it was not enough. Neither are hand gestures. The siren finally got the driver's attention. "The reason I stopped you is you were going 89 in a 55. Also, I had my lights on, you didn't pull over. Any reason why?" Bunger said to the driver.Bunger said distracted driving is also a big problem."He was clearly not paying attention. He was distracted. He was speeding, didn't act to emergency equipment properly," Bunger said. "He may have been just zoned out, but that's not a great way to drive."It's a ticket for that driver. Another driver received a warning and a lesson on how excessive speed diminishes safety and survival. "You have to remember, you're not going to survive if you rear end someone going 80 mph," Bunger said."I'm a nurse and I know what I see in the hospital and I wish everybody can actually slow down. It's better to get there than not get there at all," Marion said.Sadly, Bunger said when he notices vehicles traveling at excessive speeds and being operated dangerously, if he can't stop them, he said, "I figure I'm going to have to do another collision re-construction."As part of their ongoing efforts, extra state troopers will be on the roads for the holidays. That includes the Maryland State Police Impaired Driving Reduction Effort (SPIDRE) team looking for impaired drivers.​