Fort Lauderdale Car Accident Attorney Blog
Florida is in some trouble. According to a recent press release from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the number of fatalities among bicyclists, pedestrians and motorcyclists in the country is on the rise. These numbers were significantly higher in 2011 in comparison to 2010.
Florida is among the nation’s most dangerous state when it comes to all three types of crashes.
With all of this bad news, officials are still patting themselves on the back for some overall decreases. While the total number of traffic fatalities may have decreased nationwide during this time, many forms of transportation continue to grow more dangerous
“Even as we celebrate the progress we’ve made in recent years, we must remain focused on addressing the safety issues that are continuing to claim more than 30,000 lives each year,” said the Administrator for the NHTSA, David Strickland.
Our Tamarac accident attorneys understand that there were close to 2,500 people killed in traffic accidents in the state of Florida in 2011. We were actually ranked as the third most dangerous state in the nation — behind California and Texas.
In 2011, there were more than 32,300 people killed in traffic accidents throughout the U.S. While officials boast this is a 2 percent decrease from the year before, there are still tens of thousands of people dying on our roadways every year. What’s most unfortunate is that most of these accidents are actually preventable. In addition to these fatalities, there were another 2.22 million peopled injured.
There are more reasons than “good driving” for the overall decrease. Officials report that the total number of vehicle miles driven was down in 2011 in comparison to 2010. When people are driving less, there are obviously fewer risks for accidents. Americans were staying home more because of the struggling economy and because of the rising gas prices. But that’s all changing!
Now that the economy is improving and gas prices are dipping, residents are feeling a little more comfortable hitting the road and taking those vacations they’ve passed up in recent years. The total number of vehicle miles traveled is expected to increase and with that we’re going to see more risks and ultimately more accidents, injuries and fatalities. It’s time like these that we need to pay the utmost attention to our driving skills. We also need to pay attention to the most vulnerable travelers along our roadways.
Pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcyclists are urged to be extra careful. Here are the alarming stats:
-Bicyclist fatalities increased by more than 8.5 percent.
-Pedestrian fatalities jumped by about 3 percent.
-Motorcyclist fatalities increased by more than 2 percent.
Snowbirds are in town and visitors are venturing south for the winter. This is when our accident risks are the highest. Be safe out there and stay one step ahead of the traffic around you. Alert and defensive driving habits are your number one defense against a serious accident.
Contact the South Florida injury lawyers at Freeman & Mallard for a free and confidential review of your case. Call 1-800-561-7777.
More Blog Entries:
High School Student Hit and Killed in Florida Bicycling-Car Accident, Fort Lauderdale Car Accident Attorney Blog, September 2, 2011
Young Pompano Child Killed in Parking Lot Accident, Fort Lauderdale Car Accident Attorney Blog, October 7, 2012