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It only makes sense that young, inexperienced drivers pose a greater risk than those who have been driving for years. Statistics from across the nation are consistent in showing that car accidents are the number one killer of teens. Young drivers are more likely to speed, drink and drive, and use their cell phones than older groups of drivers. They also use seat belts less frequently, a major reason for catastrophic and fatal injuries in a crash.
Facing another cold, Massachusetts winter morning on your way to your car can be depressing, to say the least. Your car’s windshield is solid snow and ice and it can’t be more than 2 degrees outside. A large pile of snow is also on your roof. So, you shave off a small amount of ice and snow from the front windshield, just barely enough to see ahead of you, get the car started and you’re off. But you fail to see a car to your right at the next intersection and you slam into it.
Texting while driving has caused too many collisions. Since 2010, Massachusetts has outlawed texting while driving. This law, however, did not ban using your cellphone for making calls or scrolling through your email unless you are a driver under the age of 21. In the past few years, lawmakers have introduced legislation banning any hand-held use of cellphones for all drivers but the measures either stalled or died quietly in the House. Governor Baker did not endorse a full ban either, feeling it was unfair to drivers in older vehicles that lacked the technology that permitted hands-free use.
Any premature death is a tragedy but a fatality in a car accident can be especially traumatic since it occurs so suddenly and by the fault of another party. A recent fatal car accident in Hyannis that left a family emotionally devastated is one example.
In mid-October, New England Patriots defensive end and linebacker Harvey Langi and his wife were injured when their vehicle was rear-ended while stopped for a traffic light, in Foxboro, Massachusetts. Langi’s wife suffered broken ribs and fractures to both her hips. Langi reportedly sustained neck, back and head injuries in the collision. Langi was placed on the non-football injury list and his return to the team this season is questionable. He is a non-drafted rookie having played football at the University of Utah before beginning his two-year mission for the Church of Latter Day Saints. He had resumed his college career at BYU before being picked up by the Patriots for the 2017 season. He has only played one game thus far in his NFL career.
Insurance fraud is one of the most widespread economic crimes that occurs in the US, accounting for losses of an astonishing $90 billion per year. Car accident fraud is one of these crimes, which is punishable as a felony in Massachusetts.
Distracted driving is now the main focus of auto safety advocates, displacing drunk driving though that still remains a major concern and will likely continue until autonomous or self-driving vehicles become the norm. And the concern over distracted driving is really over use of smartphones with Apple becoming the antagonist in the discussion. Apple has been sued in various lawsuits for allowing its phones and apps to be used by motorists despite apparently having the technology that may disable the device while driving or at least give the user an opportunity to do so.
In a recent trucking accident on Interstate 93 in Milton, Massachusetts, a truck carrying a heavy load of cheese flipped on its side, damaging guard rails, taking down power lines and causing major delays. Fortunately, no one was injured other than the sensitivities of cheese lovers.
Although we can make cheese jokes at the driver’s expense, what is frightening is that the truck driver was given a chemical test that revealed he had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level of 0.11%. Motorists cannot legally drive with a BAC of 0.08% or higher. Commercial drivers, like the cheese truck driver, are driving unlawfully if their BAC is at least 0.04%. Motorists should not drive with any alcohol in their system whatsoever. It impairs.
Bay state residents may be politically liberal but we are also libertarian-minded when it comes to certain issues such as wanting the government to stay out of particular social matters. However, this streak of free thinking and hands-off attitude does not translate well when it comes to seat belt use.
Massachusetts ranks third to last in the entire country when it comes to seat belt use, behind New Hampshire and South Dakota. Amazingly, New Hampshire only requires those over 18 to buckle up. It has been a struggle through the years to get our Commonwealth residents to use their seat belts but efforts to make non-seat belt use a primary violation have failed. Currently, you cannot be stopped or ticketed for failing to use your seat belt unless you first are observed to have violated some other ordinance or traffic law.
Motorcycle accidents and fatalities have been decreasing for several years but in 2016, state officials are finding that the trend is reversing. There are likely several reasons for this unfortunate circumstance.
Officials are mostly blaming the mild winter for the rise in motorcycle accidents. Traffic observers commented that they rarely if ever saw motorcycle accidents in the winter months in prior years but the warm weather brought out riders as early as February in 2016. There have been 2 fatal motorcycle accidents each month from February to April giving the state a head start toward exceeding its average of 38 to 46 fatalities it experienced in the past 3 years. Warm weather always brings out more vehicles and as a result, and the incidence of accidents are bound to increase.