Speeding Related Deaths Unaffected by Increased Safety Measures
Despite all the new technologies going into vehicles to help make them safer, speeding-related fatalities have not declined in almost 30 years according to a report by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association (GHSA).
Speeding-related accidents make up about one-third of all traffic deaths each year, with over 10,000 fatalities reported in 2010 alone. This is despite a 57-percent increase in drivers wearing seatbelts (in fatal accidents) and a 24-percent decrease in alcohol-impared drivers involved in fatal crashes.
Very little has been done to improve state laws on speeding since 2005, according to the GHSA. Seven states have even increased their speed limits with some going as high as 85-mph. Only two of the 50 states surveyed have increased their fines for speeding while only three states have an excessive speed classification. In total, 11 states have implemented an aggressive driver law, but only one of those added it since 2005.
A 1995 repeal on the national speed limit has resulted in an overall increase of 3-percent in fatalities according to a 2009 study in American Journal of Public Health. The long-term effects of the 1995 appeal estimates that over 12,000 deaths can be attributed to an increase in speed limits on the roads.
For those who have been commuting daily since the mid-to-late ’90s there has been a decrease in law enforcement on freeways, while the vast majority of drivers employ a “keep up with traffic” rate of speed.
The GHSA report has issued recommendations to the states and NHTSA to help address the speeding problem:
States should:
- Look into speed concerns through aggressive driving enforcement, since the public believes it’s a more serious threat to safety.
- Target speed enforcement in school and work zones, as this has higher public support and viewed as less controversial.
NHTSA should:
- Sponsor a national high-visibility enforcement campaign and support public awareness efforts to address speeding and aggressive driving.
- Promote best practices in automated enforcement strategies. Only 14 states allow automated speed enforcement and only two allow it everywhere in the state.
- Sponsor a National Forum on Speeding and Aggressive Driving to bring experts together to develop a plan and share information.
[Source: Consumer Reports]
Jason Siu began his career in automotive journalism in 2003 with Modified Magazine, a property previously held by VerticalScope. As the West Coast Editor, he played a pivotal role while also extending his expertise to Modified Luxury & Exotics and Modified Mustangs. Beyond his editorial work, Jason authored two notable Cartech books. His tenure at AutoGuide.com saw him immersed in the daily news cycle, yet his passion for hands-on evaluation led him to focus on testing and product reviews, offering well-rounded recommendations to AutoGuide readers. Currently, as the Content Director for VerticalScope, Jason spearheads the content strategy for an array of online publications, a role that has him at the helm of ensuring quality and consistency across the board.
More by Jason Siu
Comments
Join the conversation
It's not the cars or the enforcement thats needs to be better. It's the education of how to handle a car at highspeed and in moments of panic. We as people need to take more responsibility in things we do especially driving. It's an important necessity in this time and age. Driver training should involve wet course training, auto cross to show a new driver what it's like to be out of control and what to do to attempt getting back under control. Education is the answer not more enforcement.
What a TWO-FACED "problem"-- the report defines speeding as "exceeding the posted speed limit [--OR--] driving too fast for conditions". Note: most speeding tickets issued AFTER crashes are "too fast for conditions" (BAD like fog, rain, snow, ice, etc). Most issued WITHOUT A CRASH are for "exceeding the posted speed limit" --GOOD conditions. A solution is using variable speed limits appropriate for conditions, say, like Wyoming does on I-80 -- where the speed limit can vary from 35 mph to 75 mph. After all "A relatively low percent of speeding-related fatalitiesabout 14 percent occurs on Interstate highways [but the] speeding fatality rate for local roads is three times" higher, according to the Federal Highway Administration's Speeding Counts brochure. http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/speedmgt/ref_mats/fhwasa09028/resources/SpeedCountsNumbers.pdf