The federal administration spends millions of dollars in traffic safety campaigns every year. An analysis of the effectiveness of these campaigns finds that unless these education campaigns are also combined with practical action, they may have a very limited impact on traffic safety or the number of car accidents which occur each year.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s traffic safety campaigns encourage motorists to drive safely, wear seatbelts and avoid driving under the influence of alcohol. One stellar campaign that the federal agency conducts annually is the Click it or Ticket campaign that encourages motorists to wear seatbelts while driving. The campaign is credited with increasing seatbelt usage across the country, and usage rates are currently now at above 90%. This is a very respectable percentage, although it is still imperative that we reach out to the 10% of motorists who fail to wear seat belts. Individuals who fail to wear a seatbelt are those who are most likely to suffer a personal injury in a car accident. To learn more about personal injury matters involving car accidents, please visit our website.
However, according to some experts, it is not the campaign by itself that has promoted seat belt use. Rather, it is the fact that newer automobiles now come with a seatbelt warning system that gives a motorist time to wear the seatbelt and make sure that everyone else is also buckled in before the driver operates the car. In one such system, the car will not start until a few seconds after the ignition is turned on to give the motorist time to buckle up.
Many experts believe that when campaigns like Click it or Ticket are combined with practical actions, they are much more effective in keeping people safe. They argue that education campaigns on their own have very limited effectiveness. It is not as if people do not know that it is not safe to drink and drive. No one sets out to become an intoxicated driver who causes an accident. These are rash driving behaviors that the motorist is very aware could be dangerous. Similarly, motorists are well aware that speeding is risky, and can cause high-impact car accidents resulting in death. That does not stop millions of motorists from driving at reckless speeds every year.
These experts point to the success of child car seat campaigns a few decades ago that were fundamentally critical to the expanded use of car seats. More than 90% of American motorists now make sure that they use car seats for their children before they begin driving, and experts believe that it is not just child safety seat education campaigns that helped expand usage, but also the fact that parents are given practical help from technicians and firefighters on the installation of car seats. Education campaigns, on their own, would not have achieved this result. Instead of simply airing PSAs about the dangers of speeding, they believe it would be more effective to have this PSA in combination with roads that are designed to promote lower speeds. Such measures have been implemented in the European Union with great success.
The Atlanta car accident attorneys at the Katz Personal Injury Lawyers represent persons who have suffered injuries in car accidents in the metro Atlanta region and across Georgia. If you or a loved one have suffered injuries in a car accident, talk to an attorney at our law firm and discuss your options to a claim for damages. You may qualify for compensation that includes medical expenses, lost income, and other forms of damages. Talk to a lawyer at our firm, and discuss your case. Please click here to contact us to discuss your legal matter.