Killer Roads Report: Georgia Highways More Dangerous Because of Negligent Motorists
A report based on auto accident statistics by the Department of Transportation between 1994 and 2008 lists the most dangerous roads in the country by the number of fatalities that have occurred here. The top 20 is made up in a large part by cities in heavily populated states, like Texas and California.
According to the data, 23,640 people died on Georgia highways in auto accidents between 1994 and 2008.
·21.5 percent of these fatal accidents involved a speeding motorist.
·25 percent involved an accident with at least one drunk driver.
·55.7 percent of the fatal accidents, involved persons not buckled up at the time of the crash.
We also drilled into county-wide statistics for Georgia, and came up with some interesting statistics.
·The most dangerous highway in DeKalb County is I-285, with 95 accidents contributing to 104 deaths. Out of these, 25.3 accidents involved drunk driving, 18. 9 percent involved a speeding driver, and 41.3 percent involved failure to wear seatbelts.
·The most dangerous highway in Gwinnett County is I-85, with 83 accidents during the study period. These contributed to 90 deaths. More than 54 percent of these were linked to failure to buckle up, 38. 6 percent involved a drunk driver and 21.7 involved a speeding motorist
·In Clayton County, the highest number of fatalities between 1994 and 2008 were recorded on I-75, where there were 48 fatalities from a total of 43 crashes. Here, seatbelt use seems to be an even bigger factor in deaths, with 60.4 percent of fatal accidents involving failure to buckle up. The rates of DUI and speeding were comparatively lower at 18.6 percent and 16.3 percent respectively.
·In Fulton County, I-75 accounted for the highest number of fatalities, with 124 deaths from a total of 110 accidents. Here too, poor rates of seatbelt usage were a major factor in fatalities, with close to 60 percent of crashes involving motorists who were not buckled up.
It’s clear that motorist negligence including failure to wear safety seat belts, drunk driving and driving at excessive speeds, is contributing to the high death rates on these so-called “killer roads.”
The Atlanta accident lawyers at the Katz Personal Injury Lawyers represent injured victims of auto accidents in and around the metro Atlanta area.