One in 10 Traffic Accident Deaths in Kentucky Occurs on Interstate Highways

Kentucky State Police are hailing the multi-state “Staying Alive on 75” campaign a success, reporting that there were no fatalities on the highway during the three-day program.

Law enforcement agencies from Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio and Michigan joined Kentucky to step up patrols along 1,786 miles of Interstate 75 during the last weekend in March. It is part of a larger effort by the International Association of Chiefs of Police to reduce overall traffic deaths in the U.S. by 15 percent in 2014, according to a Kentucky State Police news release.

About 10 percent of fatal motor vehicle accidents in Kentucky occur each year on interstate highways, according to the Kentucky Strategic Highway Safety Plan.

Traffic safety officers were on the lookout for some of the primary causes of deadly car accidents today:

• Distracted driving: There is no shortage of ways that a driver’s attention can be diverted from the road today, ranging from a pair of squabbling siblings in the back seat to the ever-present cell phone. More than 3,000 people were killed and 421,000 injured in crashes involving a distracted driver in 2012, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
• Aggressive driving: You probably already know what aggressive driving is, but the NHTSA has an actual definition. In its words, aggressive driving takes place when “an individual commits a combination of moving traffic offenses so as to endanger other persons or property.” The agency estimates that nearly two-thirds of all fatal crashes involve aggressive driving and that aggressive driving is the cause of nearly 35 percent of all traffic collisions. Examples of aggressive driving include running a red light, tailgating, weaving in and out of lanes, improper lane changes, passing on the right and “road rage.”
• Speeding: Statistics show that speeding is one of the top causes of car accidents. Speed-related crashes claimed the lives of nearly 10,000 people in 2011, according to the most recent government data. The good news is that the number of speed-related fatalities has steadily declined since 2002, but far too many people are still killed and injured in preventable accidents caused by a speeding driver each day.
• Seat belt use:  Everyone should buckle up – it’s the law, with very few exceptions. Although seat belt use in America averages 82 percent, it’s only 67 percent in Kentucky, according to police records. That’s the third-lowest rate of seat belt usage in the United States. Yet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that buckling up reduces a motorist’s risk of injuries and/or death by as much as 50 percent. Airbags should never be considered a substitute for a seat belt, the CDC also cautions.
• Commercial motor vehicle safety: Some of the most brutal accidents involve commercial motor vehicles, such as trucks, tractor trailers, buses and motor coaches. The sheer size of a commercial vehicle can make it a deadly companion alongside standard passenger vehicles and motorcycles, especially if federal and state safety regulations are not followed. Unfortunately, sometimes commercial motor vehicle companies and/or their employees fail to take appropriate safety measures, such as regular inspections and maintenance. Truck companies have also come under fire in recent years for violations of hours-of-service regulations, which dictate how long a driver may stay on the road before taking a rest.

Law enforcement is planning three other waves of Staying Alive on 75 throughout the year. At Frank Jenkins Law Office, we applaud the multi-state cooperation that will help make our highways safer places to travel.