Boston Car Accident Lawyer Blog

Our Massachusetts car accident lawyers have recently reported on our Boston Car Accident Lawyer blog that parents can reduce the risk of their teen being involved in a traffic crash simply by spending more diverse and instructive time supervising them during the permitting process.

Car accidents kill more teenagers each year than suicide, homicide and cancer. The AAA Foundation reports that in 2008, more than 800,000 drivers aged 15 to 18 were involved in car accidents which claimed the lives of 3,431 vehicle occupants and injured 350,000.

Recently the AAA Foundation undertook a year-long in-depth study of supervised driving and found that student drivers were not getting enough practice driving at night, in bad weather, or in heavy-traffic conditions on city roads, highways or interstates. Nor was there enough dialogue between parent and child regarding defensive driving or navigating safely through unexpected driving situations.

One key element to cultivating good driving skills in your teen is being a good example, AAA Massachusetts reports. To help parents and teens make the most of their shared time behind the wheel, the State of Illinois produced a parent-teen driving guide that provides instructive tips for a few common and more complex driving skills teen need to master. They include:

BACKING UP:

~ Before putting the vehicle in reverse, check all around the vehicle for pedestrians, other cars or objects (like mailboxes). Physically turn your body, don’t just rely upon side- and rear-view mirrors.

~ Backing up is a “walking speed” activity. It’s easy to get disoriented with the mechanics of moving in reverse, so you want to tackle the process at a low rate of speed. Keep your foot lightly hovering over the brake pedal and remember that tiny steering corrections can have a big impact in the direction of your vehicle. Turn the wheel gently, slowly and thoughtfully.

ESTABLISHING RIGHT OF WAY:

~ Working emergency vehicle ALWAYS have the right-of-way in any traffic situation and most states have some form of “move over” law on the books that requires drivers to slow down and change lanes when approaching an emergency vehicle or if one is coming up from behind.

~ If another driver isn’t obeying right-of-way “chain of command” – don’t resist or obstruct them. Let them proceed to avoid and accident or prevent a road-rage incident.

~ When making a left turn, oncoming traffic has the right-of-way. Just because you have a green light, does not mean it is safe to proceed. Before you move, check traffic and road conditions to make sure you have a clear path where you are heading and a safe entry zone.
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Initially designed and constructed to protect Massachusetts road department and maintenance workers from slipping from the jobsite and falling onto the heavily trafficked eight-to-ten lane expressway, the Big Dig tunnel handrails have been involved in seven Boston traffic fatalities from 2005 to 2008, the Boston Globe reports.

Our Boston workers’ compensation attorneys and Massachusetts personal injury lawyers have been monitoring an ongoing debate between lawyers, accident reconstruction specialists, engineers and officials from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Each player has produced copious amounts of data regarding the effectiveness, safety, benefits and hazards posed by the six miles of guardrails that sit atop raised walkways that line both sides of the highway.

The debate may rage on, but it is the gristly depiction of how the fatalities are described and remembered that has had the most impact on public opinion. Of the seven drivers or passengers of motor vehicles or motorcycles killed after coming in contact with the guardrails, most experienced either brutal dismemberment or were ensnared in the handrails during impact and pulled from their vehicle.

While in some cases speeding or seat-belt use played some role in the cause of death, accident reconstruction specialists hired by the Boston Globe to review accident reports found three flaws in the barrier design they say significantly impacted survivability.

First, the railings are too widely spaced, leading to possible victim entanglement upon impact. Second, because the height of the guardrails are level with a car window or motorcycle seats they create a snag hazard for passengers or drivers who come into contact with the barrier. Third, instead of using rounded vertical posts to reinforce the horizontal handrails, the Big Dig posts have squared off corners which can act like blades when they come into contact with skin.

Experts on the side of Mass-DOT disagree. They say that not only have the railings passed numerous engineering and construction inspections, they also comply with state and federal safety regulations and industry safety standards. Whatever side prevails, seven families mourn lost loved ones, litigation continues and the original handrails remain intact and in place.
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Driver complaints and stimulus funds are leading to much-needed improvements of one South Brookline roadway, the Boston Globe reports. A well-travelled, meandering curvy road near Faulkner Hospital – Allendale Street – has worried neighbors for years. Signage is poor, road surface conditions are patched and potholed and dividing lines and other road markings are completely faded. Residents complain that the foliage-lined swerving road already offers drivers poor visibility of oncoming traffic. Pair the nature of the roadway with the deteriorating road conditions and it is a recipe for disaster.

As our Boston car accident attorneys have reported in an earlier post to our Boston Personal Injury Attorney blog, this is not the first time neighbors have complained about potentially hazardous road conditions. With that said, a spokesman for the mayor’s office did tell the Boston Globe that and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation has planned an upgrade for Allendale Street using stimulus funding from the Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The project will begin mid-October and should take about three weeks and will include repaving and restriping.

According to a 2009 Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation study, roadway conditions are the single most lethal contributing factor in fatal car accidents nationwide – more so than speeding, impairment and failing to buckle up. In 2009, poor roadway conditions were linked to 52.7 percent of all U.S. fatal car accidents and 38 percent of non-fatal crashes. It is estimated that road-condition crashes cost the U.S. economy more than $217 billion annually in medical expenses, productivity costs, property damage and quality-of-life expenses.

Wet weather and speeding are believed to have both played a role in a mid-morning I-95 Boston car accident last week that claimed the life of 32-year-old Hyde Park man, the Boston Herald reports.

The 1993 Infiniti crashed into a concrete barrier which caused the car to flip before coming to rest between two unoccupied toll booths. Law enforcement indicated the vehicle did not slow before entering the pay lane. The driver was extracted from the vehicle and taken to Exeter Hospital, where he died. There has been speculation that a medical condition may have been a factor in the crash.

Slippery roads, whether wet with rain, snow or ice, can make driving more dangerous than usual. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation offers the below list of tips and precautions for drivers to consider as cooler weather and the winter season arrives, bringing with it less favorable driving conditions.

IN THE EVENT OF SLIPPERY ROAD CONDITIONS:

~ Before you head out, know the current road and weather conditions. Dialing 511 from your cell phone will provide you with the latest updates. With that said, once behind the wheel: pay attention, drive cautiously and defensively, and use your brakes carefully. Leave plenty of room for stopping.

~ Before you back out of your driveway, clear all snow and ice from your vehicle.

~ Remember that bridges and overpass sections freeze before other stretches of roadway and that exit and entrance ramps may be more difficult to navigate than straight-aways.

~ In rain or snow don’t use cruise control and look further ahead and around than when driving in clear conditions. Turn on your lights to enhance visibility.

~ Give snow plows and maintenance vehicles a wide berth and never pass them on the right side.

IN THE EVENT OF A STRANDING:

~ Keep a first-aid kit, some bottled water and non-perishable snacks, and a change of warm clothes in your trunk.

~ Stay in your vehicle and stay calm.

~ Keep a window cracked to ensure access to fresh air and only run the engine intermittently.

~ If you can, call 911.
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It’s no secret that the car you drive can have a big impact on your ability to survive a serious Massachusetts car accident. We’ve all seen the sub-compact cars that look as though they could be totaled in an accident with an alley cat. At the same time, the rollover issue with the Ford Explorer some years ago proved that large is not necessarily safer.

This week, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is debuting a new 5-Star Safety Rating System available at www.safecar.gov.

Of good news to motorists is that more expensive also does not necessarily mean safer. The BMW 5 series received a “5.” the highest overall rating, but so did the modestly priced Hyundai Sonata.

Cars are rated from 1 to 5 stars and not all cars have been rated yet under the new system, which also used female test dummies for the first time, and not just dummies simulating men. The new system also provides an Overall Vehicle Score for the first time.

“More stars equal safer cars,” said Secretary LaHood. “With our upgraded Five-Star Safety Ratings System, we’re raising the bar on safety. Through new tests, better crash data, and higher standards, we are making the safety ratings tougher and more meaningful for consumers.”

The new system is tougher than the old and rates cars under three broad areas, frontal crash, side crash and rollover resistance.

“We want consumers to embrace these new safety technologies as a way to make vehicles safer,” said National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator David Strickland. “We believe electronic stability control, lane departure warning, and forward collision warning offer significant safety benefits and consumers should consider them when buying a new car.”
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