Accident Prevention

Published on: September 5, 2022

Georgia Cracks Down on Speeding Drivers to Prevent Car Accidents

High speeds are a major factor in car accidents in the metro Atlanta region and across Georgia every year. Concerned at the growing number of car wrecks involving speeding drivers, Georgia and a number of Southern states are enforcing speed limits and cracking down on errant drivers.

Operation Southern Slow Down is a multi-state initiative that involves a total of five Southern States including Georgia. The week-long campaign this year will see law enforcement officers in all of these states cracking down on speeding drivers. In the five years that Operation Southern Slow Down has been conducted, Georgia Highway Patrol officers have written down more than 55,000 speeding tickets. Police have also pulled over 3,200 drivers for driving under the influence of alcohol during the week-long enforcement campaign over the past 5 years.

Officers intend to spend a lot of time and attention on speeding drivers in construction work zones. For instance, Interstate 95 and Interstate 16 are currently home to construction zones, and officers will be looking at cracking down on speeding drivers in these areas. Workers in construction zones are always at a high risk of personal injuries in car accidents, and those risks are amplified when there are speeding drivers in these zones. Speed limits are always posted well before the start of a construction work zone and even through the zone. Drivers must lower speeds as soon as they see these signs and stick to the posted speed limits as they drive through the construction zone.

Published on: August 29, 2022

Feds Announce New Child Car Seat Rule to Prevent Personal Injuries in Car Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The federal administration has finalized a new rule that will strengthen standards for car safety seat design and manufacture, and help to protect children from serious personal injuries in side impact car accidents.

The rule has been more than two decades in the making. For years now, child safety advocates have been calling on the federal administration to ensure that the child car safety seats that millions of American parents trust to keep their children safe are manufactured with the ability to withstand personal injuries in side- impact auto accidents or T-bone car accidents. These are deadly auto accidents and can cause serious personal injuries to passengers in the car.

Congress asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to enact a rule like this two decades ago, and the time has finally come. The agency has finally announced its intention to finalize the rule. The rule will require that manufacturers test child car safety seats for protection in side- impact auto accidents and not just frontal impact car accidents. Earlier, car seat manufacturers were only required to test for frontal impact auto accidents at 30 miles per hour . The new rule requires that manufacturers also test their car seats for side impact at 30 mph.

Published on: July 20, 2022

High Visibility Enforcement Campaigns may help Reduce Auto Accident Fatality Numbers

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Even as federal transportation authorities grapple with a spike in deaths in all types of car accidents, a new study finds that high visibility traffic enforcement campaigns may possibly hold the key to reducing those numbers and keeping motorists safe.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently revealed that auto accident death numbers are on the rise. Those numbers were extremely high in 2020, a year in which American motorists drove fewer vehicle miles than in previous years. In 2021, according to projected estimates, those numbers were at their highest in more than a decade. This increase has been high enough to spur federal transportation authorities into action. The new National Highway Traffic Safety Administration chief has announced his Roadway Safety Strategy, a plan that aims to combine efforts towards safer roads, vehicles and motorists to reduce car accident death numbers.

A new analysis by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finds that high visibility traffic law enforcement campaigns like those that are frequently conducted to encourage motorists to buckle up or drive safely or at posted speeds may be effective in helping reduce car accident fatality numbers

Published on: July 13, 2022

Intersection Assistance Technologies Could Significantly Reduce Accidents Involving Seniors

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Newer intersection assistance technologies could reduce the number of car accidents resulting in serious injuries or deaths involving senior drivers by as much as one-third.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recently published the results of a new study that finds that intersection assistance technologies which include lane assist, vehicle- to- vehicle connectivity and other type of technological features can go a long way in helping mitigate the kind of risks that place a senior driver at risk of a car accident.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety researchers compared 5 auto safety features that are currently available on many automobiles, and compared their impact on the safety of senior drivers with others that are not as widely available. The technologies that are currently available include front crash prevention systems, brighter headlights, lane departure warning systems that warn the motorist when the car is in danger of veering away from its lane and blind spot detection systems that can alert the motorist to blind spots that are not visible to the driver. All of these technologies can significantly help seniors deal with the risks arising from failing vision, poor reflexes, restricted mobility and the other challenges that make it difficult for them to drive safely.

Published on: June 30, 2022

Combination of Safety Campaigns and Strong Action Most Effective in Preventing Car Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The federal administration spends millions of dollars in traffic safety campaigns every year. An analysis of the effectiveness of these campaigns finds that unless these education campaigns are also combined with practical action, they may have a very limited impact on traffic safety or the number of car accidents which occur each year.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s traffic safety campaigns encourage motorists to drive safely, wear seatbelts and avoid driving under the influence of alcohol. One stellar campaign that the federal agency conducts annually is the Click it or Ticket campaign that encourages motorists to wear seatbelts while driving. The campaign is credited with increasing seatbelt usage across the country, and usage rates are currently now at above 90%. This is a very respectable percentage, although it is still imperative that we reach out to the 10% of motorists who fail to wear seat belts. Individuals who fail to wear a seatbelt are those who are most likely to suffer a personal injury in a car accident. To learn more about personal injury matters involving car accidents, please visit our website.

However, according to some experts, it is not the campaign by itself that has promoted seat belt use. Rather, it is the fact that newer automobiles now come with a seatbelt warning system that gives a motorist time to wear the seatbelt and make sure that everyone else is also buckled in before the driver operates the car. In one such system, the car will not start until a few seconds after the ignition is turned on to give the motorist time to buckle up.

Published on: May 31, 2022

Georgia DOT Extends Connected Vehicle Pilot Program to More Areas

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Drivers on Georgia’s roads and highways have no doubt seen them – the overhead warning signs of traffic problems up the road. Road signs and warning signs are play an important role alerting drivers of upcoming dangers on the roads. The Georgia Department of Transportation has decided to extend a data gathering program involving connected vehicles to more areas around the state.

The program is the latest phase of an initiative that was launched in 2019. The initiative is a collaboration between the Georgia Department of Transportation, Panasonic, Kia Motors and The Ray, a transportation tech company. The aim of the initiative was to gather data using vehicles connected to each other along limited stretches of highway. The first phase of the program involved four Georgia Department of Transportation vehicles that were connected with each other and collected data as they traveled frequently on routes along an 18 – mile stretch of interstate 85.

However, the program has now been expanded to cover rural areas and a greater number of vehicles. In this phase, the program will involve 7 Kia vehicles that are part of the connected vehicle environment. The aim is to collect real time traffic data as these vehicles travel every day. The difference between this phase and the previous phase is that the 7 Kia cars are being driven by employees who will be going about their daily lives and work routines, traveling to work and on errands, all the while gathering important data about the effectiveness of connected vehicle programs in ensuring motorist safety. The potential for data gathering is, therefore, huge in this phase.

Published on: May 7, 2022

NHTSA Runs Campaign to Prevent Distracted Driving Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Distracted driving has become more and more problematic over the years. Fatal distracted driving accidents are more likely to involve motorists between the ages of 18 and 34. It is this demographic that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration targeted recently in a campaign against distracted driving.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s nationwide distracted driving campaign ran between April 4 and 11 this year. The campaign was called U Drive. U Text. U Pay and it focused on reminding drivers about the dangers of using electronic communication devices like cell phones at the wheel. Most motorists think that the most dangerous thing that they could be doing with a cell phone while at the wheel is texting or talking on cell phone. The truth is that there are a wide variety of other very distracting tasks that a motorist can perform while at the wheel. These can include reading and replying to emails, uploading photos and videos on social media and taking selfies while driving. All of these are very distracting activities that can significantly increase the potential for a deadly accident.

You do not even have to be engage with your cell phone throughout the time you are driving for the risk to increase significantly. Merely taking your eyes off the road or your hands off the wheel for a few seconds can be sufficient to cause a disastrous crash.

Published on: May 4, 2022

Fundamental Change in Attitudes will be Key to Reducing Traffic Accident Deaths

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Many American cities, including our very own Atlanta have adopted the Vision Zero goal of reducing traffic accidents to the minimum over the next few decades. However, while the goal is laudable, the reality is that most American cities have struggled in their efforts in meeting this goal.

The Vision Zero goal is a commendable one, and has become very popular with cities around the world. Atlanta has its own version of the Vision Zero goal. According to the Atlanta Department of Transportation, the Vision Zero goal is a systems-driven approach to reducing traffic accident fatalities through measures like speed management and better street design. There is no denying that there can be no progress made in reducing traffic accident facilities to the absolute minimum unless we take into consideration the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists.

In most European countries that have adopted Vision Zero, the program has been successful. According to this Blomberg report, Oslo, the capital city of Norway is a prime example of what can happen when transportation agencies and the population come together with a single goal in mind – to minimize fatal accidents that are entirely preventable. Fatal accidents in Oslo are so rare that they result in a full-blown investigation and not just a police report when they occur.

Published on: April 26, 2022

Call for Regulators to Require Emergency Braking Systems that Work at Night

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Faulty car brakes can cause horrific accidents usually resulting in serious injuries. Federal regulators are working on new laws in the next couple of years that would require auto manufacturers to install automatic emergency braking systems in their cars. Safety advocates, however, are calling on regulators to require manufacturers to install systems that work in all light conditions, including at night.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has made it clear that it will be working on completing rulemaking by 2024, requiring auto manufacturers to install pedestrian automatic emergency braking systems in all their automobiles. These systems work at detecting pedestrians in the path of the car. There is significant research that shows the efficacy of these systems in helping protect pedestrians against accidents. For instance, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has conducted research that clearly shows the benefits of pedestrian automatic emergency braking systems in helping motorists to avoid pedestrians. Collisions with motor vehicles are a major cause of injuries and fatalities in pedestrian accidents every year.

The researchers found that the systems significantly help prevent collisions in the daytime. There isn’t significant data pointing to the effectiveness of the systems at night, however. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is calling on federal regulators to pressure automakers to install pedestrian automatic emergency braking systems that work both in the daytime as well as at night. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, it has found in its studies that these systems can be enhanced to make them very effective during low visibility conditions like night-time as well.

Published on: April 23, 2022

Used Car Buyers Less Likely to be Aware of Accident Prevention Technologies

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The recent shortage of available cars for purchase has made it difficult for consumers to get their vehicle of choice. Ideally, one would want to get the safest car available to protect them in an accident. However, the average American driver is much more likely to be aware of all the features on his large screen television than the car uses to get around safely every day. This lack of knowledge is even more glaring among used car buyers who often have little knowledge about the accident prevention features that their car includes.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found recently in a study that buyers of used cars do not have all information about the technologies in their vehicles. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety conducted a survey of drivers who had bought automobiles between 2016 and 2019. The survey group included more than 400 owners who had bought their new vehicles in a showroom, while the rest consisted of motorists who had bought used cars.

The survey found that buyers of both old and new cars were not completely aware of the safety features that their vehicle included. Just about two-thirds of new car buyers, for instance, were aware of information relating to the adaptive cruise control feature on their cars. This feature includes all the conveniences of traditional cruise control, but also slows and speeds up depending on the distance with the car ahead, thereby reducing the risk of a fender bender or accident. However, this feature needs to be turned on to be effective.