Georgia Injury Law Blog

For years now, the intersection of Newnan Road and Olympic Dr. in Carroll County Georgia has been one of the most dangerous intersections in the state. For the past five years alone, this intersection has been the scene of more than 50 auto accidents. These accidents have resulted in one wrongful death and at least 15 other personal injuries. Finally, construction work to enhance safety at the intersection and make it safer, has begun. As an Atlanta injury lawyer, although we are glad to see the intersection improved, we are disappointed that it took over 50 car accidents for the work to finally begin.

The Carroll County Board of Commissioners had voted back in November to move forward with a construction project that would allow for a smoother flow of traffic around what is normally a very busy intersection. This would not only facilitate easy movement of traffic, but also reduce the number of accidents that occur at this intersection. However, work was delayed because of power and utility companies that had to move lines from the area. Last week, AT&T completed the process of moving its cable lines, and now, construction work can finally go ahead.

Making this intersection safer for all residents of Carroll County has been a challenge. There have been several efforts made to calm traffic in this area, and reduce the risk of accidents. However, many of these initiatives had been shot down by transportation authorities. The Georgia Department of Transportation, for instance, rejected calls for a traffic light and a roundabout at the intersection amid concerns about traffic backup and other issues.

According to the engineers, the new design for the intersection should reduce the possibility of accidents at the intersection by as much as 70%.

Very often, Atlanta car accident attorneys notice that accidents are caused because of road defects in the design of the roadway. Many of these roads were constructed decades ago, when demographics and traffic situations were different. A seemingly safe street could quickly turn dangerous in a couple of years, when the population in an area grows rapidly, or when more numbers of motorists begin using that road to get to a destination. The Georgia Department of Transportation as well as local and county agencies should be more proactive about periodically evaluating the design of busy streets and intersections, and making changes to these roadways to alleviate car accident risks.

Posted By Robert Katz In Auto Accident Claims , Road Defects | 0 Comments Permalink

Safety Experts Warn of Bridge Collapse Risks

Experts are unanimous – many of the country’s bridges are old, and in severe need of repairs. As Georgia personal injury lawyers, we are concerned about the fact that so many of our bridges are considered “structurally deficient “or “functionally obsolete.”.

The warning about our bridges comes after an incident on the Bay Bridge in San Francisco, in which pieces of steel and a cross beam snapped off the bridge, and fell on to the upper deck. The incident resulted in minor injuries to one motorist. However, the potential for serious injuries was great, considering that the incident happened during rush hour on the bridge. The pieces of steel were part of repairs that had been conducted on the bridge over the Labor Day weekend. Questions are being asked about how the repair job fell apart so soon.

For now, investigations seem to point to high winds that day. However, it does seem like there is more than the weather for us to be concerned about. Bridge experts have already begun to warn about the safety of America’s bridges in the wake of the Bay Bridge incident. . According to ABC News, about 80,000 bridges in the country fall under the categories “structurally deficient” and “functionally obsolete.” Being “functionally obsolete” does not have to mean that a bridge is falling apart. However, the Minnesota bridge that collapsed two years ago killing 13 people, had been declared “structurally deficient” at the time of the collapse.

The American Society of Civil Engineers says that we are spending far less money on maintaining our bridges than we need to. Experts estimate that the total cost of maintaining America’s bridges run up to $17 billion. We are currently however, spending just $10 billion on bridge maintenance.

In 2007, US Department of Transportation statistics showed that 10 bridges in
Richmond County were structurally deficient. Georgia has 5,600 bridges that were built over the past 20 years. That is relatively young when you consider that the average age of an American bridge is 43 years. However, we also need to consider that more than 214 of Georgia’s bridges are more than 75 years old, while the average life span of a bridge in America is just 50 years. Our bridges are aging, and maintenance will be an issue soon than later.

Posted By Lisa Siegel In Road Defects | 0 Comments Permalink