President’s Day has arrived and that can only mean one thing for Florida drivers. We are officially in high-traffic season so motorists should be extra cautious on the roadways to avoid a West Palm Beach car accident.
This time of year brings heavy traffic, which can lead to more speeding, distracted driving, drunk driving, and aggressive driving. Our Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorneys are publishing a series of blogs about the risks involved with these kinds of driving behaviors, as well as the dangers faced by teens and the elderly drivers on our roads this time of year.
A crash is only considered speed-related if the driver is charged with speeding or the officer finds that racing, driving over the speed limit, or driving too fast under the conditions were causes for the crash. Vehicles traveling at high speeds kill, as most recently evidenced in a Tampa Bay crash when a bicyclist was killed by a speeding black Ford as reported by WTSP. Witnesses have indicated that the driver of the Ford may have been racing another vehicle at the time of the tragedy.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has reported a decline in the number of fatal speed-related crashes in the last decade. Still, statistics consistently show that about 30-32% of fatal crashes involve speeding over the 10-year span.
In 2009, 10,591 lives were lost in speed-related crashes in the United States.
In 2008, Florida had a total of 2,978 traffic fatalities according to NHTSA of which 553 were considered speed-related traffic fatalities.
In 2009, Florida recorded a total of 479 fatal crashes killing 1,068 people in speed-related crashes according to the Fatality Analysis Reporting System used by NHTSA.
The months of February, March, and April were clearly the most tragic (with the exception of August) according to the FARS report for 2009. During these three months, there were a total of 150 speed-related crashes which translates to 31% of these types of crashes occurring in February, March, and April. These three months also reported the most fatalities in speed-related crashes, totaling 337 (31.5%).
It’s evident that this time of year becomes more dangerous for Florida motorists due to the number of vehicles on the roadways. Speeding can increase your chances of a Fort Lauderdale car accident o slow down and be safe.
If you have been injured in a car accident in West Palm Beach, Margate, Miami or Port St. Lucie, contact the Law Offices of Freeman, Mallard, Sharp & Gonzalez for legal assistance. Call 1-800-529-2368 for a free appointment to discuss your rights.