Pennsylvania Personal Injury Blog

Nearly all Americans now understand that engaging in distracted driving behavior is inadvisable. But not every American understands just how easy it is to cause motor vehicle accidents as a result of this behavior. According to recent studies, a motorist's chance of being involved in an accident increases exponentially after his or her eyes have been taken off the road for three seconds or longer. In essence, drivers can only remain distracted for two second bursts or shorter with any kind of safety.

As a result of this fact, federal regulators are contemplating changes to motor vehicle manufacture which would encourage the installation of devices designed to focus drivers on the task at hand. These on-board devices would be required to meet minimum standards for distraction, including a litmus test that their use would require drivers to take their hands off the wheel or eyes from the road for no longer than the critical time period of two seconds at a time.

April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. Most drivers have become increasingly aware of the dangers of using their cell phones while driving, especially with the majority of states enacting laws banning texting and/or hand held cell phone use while driving. Distracted driving is more than just texting while driving, though. It encompasses all distractions including manual: taking your hands off of the wheel, visual: taking your eyes off of the road, and cognitive: taking your mind off of driving. Texting while driving is by far the most dangerous type of distracted driving, however, since it requires manual, visual, and cognitive attention.

This month, we encourage all drivers to avoid distractions as much as possible while driving. Distracted driving not only endangers you, but also puts your passengers, other drivers, and bystanders at risk. In 2011, 3,331 people were killed and another 387,000 people were injured in motor vehicle accidents involving a distracted driver.

The following tips can help you to avoid the dangers of distracted driving:

• Turn off your cell phone before getting into the car.
• Pull over if you need to make a phone call.
• Check driving directions before leaving for your destination and pull over if you need to check a map or GPS.
• Wait to fix your hair or apply makeup until you are done driving.
• Secure your pets.
• Pull over to take care of any situations with children in the car.
• Refrain from smoking, eating, drinking, changing music, reading and other activities that take your mind and eyes off of the road.

For more information on distracted driving and raising awareness of this serious safety issue, visit distraction.gov.

This week the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) released their annual highway crash statistics for 2012. According to the report, the number of motor vehicle accidents on Pennsylvania roadways has decreased overall, but crash fatalities have seen an increase from 1286 traffic fatalities in 2011 to 1310 in 2012.

These statistics also show an alarming local trend. According to the report, Bedford County has a fatality-to-crash ratio that is almost double that of its neighboring counties. In Bedford County last year there were 17 deaths in 670 crashes, which indicate that if you are involved in an accident in Bedford County, the chance that it will result in a fatality is approximately 2.5%, while if you are involved in an accident in Blair or Cambria Counties your fatality risk drops to only 1.3%. Bedford County has also seen a gradual increase in their fatality-to-crash ratio, while other local counties have seen declines.

The reasons for these disparities remain unclear; however, police, emergency officials, and PennDOT representatives have offered some possible explanations and suggestions on how to reverse this trend.

Some possible reasons for Bedford County's higher motor vehicle accident fatality rates include heavily trafficked highways, mountainous topography, inclement weather conditions, or rural driving habits. While all of these contribute to the problem, officials stress that the one variable that can easily be changed to reduce fatal car accidents in Bedford County is increased seat belt use.

According to statistics, rural drivers tend to ignore seat belt laws and decreased seat belt use directly correlates with increased crash fatalities. Many rural drivers think that country roads are less dangerous, so they don't need to wear a seat belt or that they are only driving a short distance, so there is no need to buckle up. A less visible police presence in rural areas can also contribute to a more relaxed attitude about obeying seat belt laws.

Source: Bedford's high fatal rate unclear, Altoona Mirror, 03 April 2013.

Most Pennsylvania residents understand that the hydrofracking process used to extract natural gas from the earth can be hazardous to humans. Not only do the workers that engage in Marcellus Shale drilling find themselves at risk for chemical exposure, anyone drinking tainted groundwater, facing property damage from drilling and residents threatened with drilling explosions can become victims of negligent and inherently dangerous fracking practices.

This reality is inspiring real concern about the preferences expressed by President Obama's nominee for Energy Secretary. Ernest Moniz has indicated that he supports hydrofracking as a potential avenue for gaining energy independence and furthering the goals of clean energy. Certainly, the natural gas industry is creating jobs at home and is helping to support some measure of energy independence. But the subject of fracking should not be approached lightly or without due consideration for the potentially injurious impact it has upon both people and property.