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Saturday, January 27, 2007

Speed kills

Governor turns his radar on speeders
Higher fines proposed to pay for trauma centers

By James Salzer
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 01/10/07

Gov. Sonny Perdue wants Georgia drivers to do something he admits has sometimes has trouble doing himself: slow down behind the wheel.

Staffers said Tuesday that Perdue's legislative leaders will push a proposal to raise fines and other penalties against drivers pulled over for exceeding 85 mph on any Georgia road and 75 mph on two-lane highways. They said the legislation would also increase fines and penalties for habitual traffic offenders, such as those with multiple drunken driving or reckless driving offenses.

Perdue officials didn't provide details of the proposed level of fines and penalties. That will be released in coming weeks, when the legislation is filed.

Part of the goal is to raise money for a more extensive trauma system to treat emergency cases, such as people hurt in car wrecks.

Perdue, speaking to about 2,000 business and political leaders attending the Georgia Chamber of Commerce's annual Eggs & Issues Breakfast on Tuesday, said Atlanta drivers are among the fastest in the country. And he said that's causing problems.

The governor said 20 percent of the state's 1,744 traffic fatalities in 2005 were due to excessive speed. Treating trauma victims costs $7.85 billion per year. And accidents further clog Atlanta's overburdened highways.

"Accidents caused by excessive speed and aggressive driving are not just affecting congestion and causing traffic jams —- they are killing people.

"We've got to stop the excessive speeding," Perdue added.

Perdue acknowledged he's not immune to lead-footing it a bit on the highway. The governor is driven to public events, but he still drives himself around at other times, his staff said.

A legislative study committee has been searching for a way to pay for more trauma centers capable of handling the most severe injuries.

With only 15 such centers spread across the state, it can sometimes take hours for accident victims in rural areas to reach one, according to the committee's report.

Meanwhile, two-thirds of Georgia's 152 hospitals are operating in the red, the report says. They are sustaining financial losses from uninsured or under-insured patients and decreasing Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement rates. Georgia absorbs an estimated $170 million in uncompensated trauma care annually, the report says.

"The bill to fully fund trauma centers for a state our size is going to be between $80 million and $85 million each year," said Sen. Cecil Staton (R-Macon), chairman of the trauma center study committee.

"Obviously, one viable option is to place the cost of these trauma centers on those who engage in reckless behavior —- including those who disobey the speed limit laws in this state and those who drive under the influence of drugs and alcohol on our interstates and highways."

Larry Schnall, senior trooper and spokesman for the Georgia State Patrol, said his agency backs the governor's initiative.

"We support anything that helps us reduce serious crashes," Schnall said. "We think it's a good attention-getter to go along with our enforcement efforts."

In a 2003 study of six states, metro Atlanta had the highest speeds clocked. The study, done for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, reported that 78 percent of the Atlanta vehicles on interstates were moving faster than 70 mph, and 18 percent exceeded 80 mph. The mean speed in the study was 75.

Those driving on rural interstates in Georgia did not fare much better. On one highway, 68 percent of motorists were going faster than 70 and 20 percent were going more than 80 mph.

Ron Moore, 78, a former Rockdale County long-distance trucker who retired to Eatonton in Middle Georgia, said he thinks the governor's plan is a good idea.

"I think it's the smartest thing he could do. High speed is a killer," he said. "People just don't realize a split second can take a life."

Moore said he remembers seeing high-speed drivers have to swerve into emergency lanes to avoid slower moving traffic when he was a trucker. Such scenes are not uncommon these days on I-75, I-85 and Ga. 400.

Higher fines might help slow things down, Moore said.

"When you get into a man's pocket book, he'll pay attention," he said.

Labels: speeding drivers punishment trauma wrecks

posted by Michael L. Neff # 5:46 AM 0 Comments

Distractions dangerous for drivers

Study: Distractions Fuel Teens' Crashes
By JAN DENNIS
Associated Press Writer

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — More teenagers are heeding warnings about drinking and driving, but they routinely face behind-the-wheel distractions from cell phones to passengers that contribute to thousands of fatal crashes every year, according to a study released Thursday.

Teens often take the wheel amid commotion, angst or fatigue that would be challenging even for older drivers, said Dr. Flaura Winston, chief investigator for the study.

"We need to go beyond the message of drinking and driving and also talk about the message of distractions," said Winston, a pediatrician with the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

The study by the children's hospital and State Farm Insurance Co., the nation's largest auto insurer, asked high school students what happens when their peers drive that makes them unsafe. The 2006 survey of more than 5,600 students was a scientific sampling of the 10.6 million students in public high schools across the U.S.

Ninety percent of teens said they rarely or never drive after drinking or using drugs, reflecting a trend that has seen teen traffic deaths involving alcohol drop by about 35 percent from 1990 to 2005, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data.

But teens reported a host of other in-car distractions that researchers say help make traffic accidents the No. 1 killer of U.S. teens, with a fatality rate four times higher than drivers aged 25-69, based on miles driven. About 5,600 teens died in traffic accidents in 2005, and about 7,500 were driving cars involved in fatal accidents.

Researchers found that one teenage passenger with a teen driver doubles the risk of a fatal crash, while the risk is five times higher when two or more teens ride along. Most states have laws restricting passengers when teens drive, but 15 states do not.

Nearly 90 percent of teens reported seeing peers drive while talking on cell phones and more than half spotted drivers using hand-held games, listening devices or sending text messages.

About 75 percent said they see teens driving while tired or struggling with powerful emotions, such as worries about grades or relationships. More than nine of 10 teens also reported seeing teen drivers speeding and half said they sometimes drive at least 10 mph over posted speed limits themselves.

"The environment for a teen driver is much more challenging and demanding than most of us adults thought. They're trying to manage all of that while trying to navigate the vehicle at the same time and they're pretty inexperienced at that," said Laurette Stiles, vice president of strategic resources at Bloomington-based State Farm.

Researchers say they will use the study to push for legislation such as stricter requirements for graduated drivers licenses, which can include mandated supervised driving with parents, night driving curfews and passenger restrictions.

The study's conclusions also will be shared with schools and parents, who can use them to warn teens about the potential hazards of driving, said Winston, who founded the children's hospital's Center for Injury Research and Prevention.

Labels: distractions cellphones drivers injuries

posted by Michael L. Neff # 5:39 AM 0 Comments

AJC article spotlights fatal car crashes for teens

'Good kids are dying out there'
Ex-police officer crusades to stop teen auto deaths

By SANDRA ECKSTEIN
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 01/26/07

Bill Richardson wanted some kind of consulting job once he retired from the Gwinnett County police department in December 2004. He hadn't planned on a new career trying to keep teens from killing themselves in cars.

But that's where life has led him. And his group, "It Won't Happen to Me," is going national this month with a new book telling the story of about 30 teens from throughout the country who have died in car crashes.

"People think — teens think — that it's just the bad kids this happens to, that it's about teenagers drinking or doing drugs and driving, but that's not it," Richardson said. "Less than 20 percent of teens involved in fatal wrecks are involved in drinking or drugs. More than 80 percent of those killed are killed because they were distracted or inexperienced. Good kids are dying out there, not just the troublemakers doing what they shouldn't be doing."

Richardson was trying to find a way to convince Gwinnett County teens that they were at risk when he produced his first book in January 2001, showing teens who had died in traffic accidents between 1990 and 1999.

"Kids would say it couldn't happen to them, so I wanted to show them that these kinds of things happen to kids like them — popular kids, athletic kids, good kids," Richardson said.

When he left the department, he incorporated his idea and took on a partner, Lauren Winborne of Atlanta.

Now they give their presentation, including a video and talks by parents who have lost a child, or teens who nearly died in accidents, throughout the metro area.

Winborne, a mother of six, has been interested in the problem since a high school friend was killed in a car wreck.

"For some reason I have known an unusual number of teens killed in car crashes," Winborne said. "But it's a very fortunate person who doesn't know a teen who was killed in a driving accident."

Richardson said he gives his program at schools, churches and even at the Gwinnett County Justice and Administration Center, where judges order teens charged with traffic offenses to attend. He also does a class for adults. With the new book, he and Winborne are hoping to take their program nationwide.

Their next presentation is scheduled for 7 p.m. Sunday at Dunwoody United Methodist Church. Admission is free. The next class, which also is open to the public, is at the Gwinnett Justice Center at 7 p.m. Feb. 19.

For more information on the program, visit www.itwonthappentome.org or call 770-289-8598.

Labels: Educate support teen drivers auto accidents

posted by Michael L. Neff # 5:34 AM 0 Comments

After accident advice by the AJC.

The following article was published by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on 01/26/07

DRIVER'S ED: Stay cool after an accident

You're likely an excellent driver —- a combination of Richard Petty and that feller who drove Miss Daisy. But there are a lot of bad drivers out there, in case you hadn't noticed. One of them may run into you. Automobile accidents ain't exactly uncommon.

What you do right after a fender-bender can go a long ways to making life a little smoother.

1 Be safe. First things first. Make sure everyone is OK. If there are no injuries, get the vehicles out of the way to prevent more fender-benders.

2 Be quiet. Don't jump out of the car hollering, "I'm so sorry. It's all my fault." Don't claim the blame, even if you are at fault. You don't want to give lawyers any words to twist around.

3 Take notes. Use some of that space in your glove compartment to keep a pen and a notebook. Use them to write down the names, addresses and telephone numbers of all drivers and passengers involved in the accident, license plate numbers, the make and model of each car, driver's license numbers, insurance identifications, the names and addresses and contact information of witnesses, the names and badge numbers of police officers or other emergency personnel. Also make notes about the damage to each car.

4 Take pictures. It's a good idea to keep a disposable camera in the glove compartment along with the notebook and pen. Use up the roll to document damage to both cars. If your cellphone has a camera, use that.

5 Police report. Ask the investigating officer where you can obtain a copy of the police report. You'll more than likely need it when you submit your claim to your insurance company.

6 Be leery. If it's a minor fender-bender, you might be tempted to settle the deal without calling in the insurance companies. Think twice about that. The other driver may renege after seeing the repair bill. By that time, it might be harder for your insurance company to gather the evidence if you file a claim.

Ed got his tips from the Insurance Information Institute and Edmunds.com.

Ed is a shade-tree mechanic who talks like a dipstick but knows his way around one.

Labels: Atlanta auto accident advice

posted by Michael L. Neff # 5:05 AM 0 Comments

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Article - women more likely than men to be hurt in car wrecks?

This was an interesting article that ran in the Atlanta Journal Constitution and other newspapers.

Car crash injuries vary with age, gender
By VIRGINIA ANDERSON
Cox News Service

Sunday, January 07, 2007

ATLANTA — Age and gender play a major role in the severity of injuries in car crashes, a fact that might steer future safety features in automobiles, according to a study by Purdue University researchers.

The findings, published in the Journal of Safety Research, suggest that vehicles designed to adapt to specific drivers could lessen the severity of injuries, said co-author Fred Mannering, a professor of civil engineering at the West Lafayette, Ind., university.

For example, with existing sensor technology, cars could detect the height and weight of a driver and the car's safety system could adjust, Mannering said.

Safety-belt tension could be varied, and the way air bags deploy could be personalized.

"What it really means is that it's an opportunity for auto manufacturers to design cars more safely," Mannering said.

Most automakers already are installing sophisticated air-bag systems — called dual-stage air bags — that adjust to the severity of the crash and the size of the driver, said Joe Nolan, head of the Vehicle Research Center of the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety, where crash testing is done.

"The [study] author's recommendation is, indeed, happening," Nolan said.

More stringent federal regulations, cheaper technology and buyer demand have moved car makers to quickly improve air-bag systems, Nolan said.

The study, a review of 32,085 Indiana vehicle crashes in 1999, also showed that age and gender play a role in the types of crashes people have.

The findings confirmed again that younger male drivers with passengers in the car were much more likely to suffer serious or fatal injuries when they are in a crash than older men or women of all age groups — a fact that parents, lawmakers and auto manufacturers should keep in mind, Mannering said.

Some findings were more surprising to the researchers.

For instance, driving a newer vehicle — less than five years old — actually increased the likelihood of fatality for older men by 216 percent.

A newer vehicle also increased the likelihood of fatality for young men, but by a lower percentage — 71 percent. The age of a vehicle did not have a significant effect on the likelihood of a fatality for middle-aged men.

Among women, safety belt usage in different age groups was a factor in the likelihood of injury, Mannering said.

Not using safety belts increased the likelihood of injury by 119 percent for young women, 164 percent for middle-aged women and 187 percent for older women.

The study did not examine the reasons for the differences. Mannering said he and co-author Samantha Islam could only speculate why the striking differences occurred.

Variations in reaction times among drivers could play a role, as well as the fit of safety belts, based on driver size, Mannering said.

The likelihood of injury from air-bag deployment may vary from age group to age group and between genders, he said.

Decreased bone density among older women may contribute to air-bag injuries, he speculated.

Even though the reasons may be unclear, Mannering said further study may reveal answers that may result in vehicle design changes.

"It's clear that that's the next direction," he said.

While that almost certainly would increase the cost of autos, Mannering said he believes those expenditures would be offset by saving money on lower insurance rates and medical bills for injuries sustained in crashes.

Virginia Anderson writes for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Journal-Constitution writer Clint Williams contributed to this article.

Labels: auto wreck injuries

posted by Michael L. Neff # 1:50 PM 0 Comments

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