Concern at high US crashes

There is concern at the high US road crash rate.
By MJ Woof September 30, 2020 Read time: 1 min
The US has a worrying rate of road crashes – image © courtesy of Mike Woof
Preliminary data suggests an increase in road deaths in the US for the first six months of 2020 compared with the same period in 2019. The estimates point to an increase in fatalities linked to the use of vehicles of 20%.

This increase in road deaths comes in spite of a 17% drop in the total distance driven, a fall caused by the global pandemic.

The data comes from the National Safety Council (NSC). More research has to be carried out to reveal the cause of the jump in fatalities linked to the use of motor vehicles.

However, the NSC has previously pointed out that driver distraction is an increasing problem for US drivers. The use of smart phones at the wheel is a particular issue according to the NSC, and while hands-free equipment may be legal, research shows it is not safe to use.

A report from the NSC, Understanding Driver Distraction, reveals that “electronic devices are visually, manually and, most of all, cognitively distracting to drivers.” In addition, this report states, “…the safest option is to completely eliminate driver use of cell phones and interactive, in-vehicle infotainment systems.”
Highway & Network Management

Related Content

  • Challenges of NMT in Nairobi, Dar es Salaam
    September 13, 2016
    Developing safety for non-motorised transport in East Africa - Shem Oirere writes. Despite increasing national budgetary allocations for the road sector in recent years, governments in East Africa have made very low investments in non-motorised transport (NMT). This is despite the fact that both Kenya and Uganda have recently passed a policy on pedestrian and cycling safety. In Kenya, the County government of Nairobi, the country’s capital, has embraced a NMT policy, while in Uganda the government has passe
    Read More
  • India plans major infrastucture investment
    February 10, 2012
    India says it turned its Commonwealth Games into a world-class success, and now it aims to do the same with its infrastructure. Patrick Smith reports. On October, 2010 India put itself on the world stage, and disaster appeared to loom as a catalogue of problems dogged its biggest ever sporting event. Costing nearly US$2 billion to stage, the most expensive Commonwealth Games ever were, according to some, in doubt.
    Read More
  • Portugal's road safety initiative
    February 14, 2012
    The Portuguese experience with road safety has proved that planning, development, introduction, and hard work do pay off in the end. Paulo Marques Augusto, president of the National Road Safety Authority (ANSR), explained that in the last 10 years a decrease of over 50% has been achieved in the number of fatalities on the road network despite a continuing growth in traffic demand (there are five million vehicles in Portugal), and a similar reduction in travel time on most of the connections between Lisbon a
    Read More
  • India plans major infrastucture investment
    April 5, 2012
    India says it turned its Commonwealth Games into a world-class success, and now it aims to do the same with its infrastructure. Patrick Smith reports On October, 2010 India put itself on the world stage, and disaster appeared to loom as a catalogue of problems dogged its biggest ever sporting event. Costing nearly US$2 billion to stage, the most expensive Commonwealth Games ever were, according to some, in doubt. After years of planning some projects were incomplete, there were health scares and a br
    Read More

Highlighted Content