Two Teenagers Hurt in Single-Car Crash

Approximately one in five auto accidents in Kentucky is a single-vehicle crash – resulting in thousands of deaths and injuries each year.

“Time and again the statistics show that the collision that kills more of us than any other is the single-vehicle, off-the-road collision,” says Bob Schaller, an editor for Road Trip America, in an article for Forbes.

A case in point: a pair of teenagers was injured in a single-vehicle wreck April 2 in Barren County.

Here are details from the Glasgow Daily Times:

A 17-year-old Smiths Grove female told deputies that she was driving west when her 2000 Dodge Neon dropped off the right shoulder of the roadway, and she over-corrected  causing the vehicle to travel across the eastbound lane of travel and strike a culvert with the front of the car, according to a [Barren County Sheriff’s Office] statement.

The vehicle then traveled back across both lanes of traffic, coming to a stop after striking a guardrail facing, according to the statement.

The driver and her passenger … were transported to T.J. Samson Community Hospital for treatment of minor injuries.

More than 8,000 people die in single-vehicle rollover crashes in the U.S. each year. Many of these crashes are preventable.

5 Tips for Avoiding a Single-Car Crash

1. Stay off the road during bad weather. This includes rain, hail, fog, sleet, snow and ice.
2. Slow down. Speeding is the top cause of run-off-road crashes.
3. Don’t drive while distracted. Drivers who text or talk on cell phones while driving are 23 times more likely to have a wreck than non-distracted drivers.
4. Don’t drink and drive. Drinking slows reaction time, distorts perceptions and dulls reflexes.
5. Be cautious on dangerous roads. Care should also be taken on surfaces that are poorly paved or pocked with potholes.

Many automakers are experimenting with ways to cut down on single-car crashes. For example, Ford is trying to reduce driver distraction by an innovation known as My Ford Touch, which puts most of a car’s controls on simple touch-activated LCD screens. There are no buttons, knobs or switches to flip. The stereo, air conditioning and GPS systems are all voice-activated.

Sources:

• Glasgow Daily Times
  http://glasgowdailytimes.com/local/x2055657147/Another-semi-wreck-snarls-traffic-on-I-65
• Forbes
  http://www.forbes.com/2010/09/22/avoid-single-car-crashes-lifestyle-vehicles-driving-safety.html
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
  http://www.nhtsa.gov/