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Nationwide, the maximum legal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level is .08.    However, most motorists are not aware their auto accident risks begins to increase long before their BAC levels reach that figure.

While .08 is the maximum limit for blood alcohol concentration across the country, the fact is that many motorists, especially light or moderate drinkers, are likely to experience deterioration in their driving abilities that significantly increases their risks of being involved in an auto accident, even at .04 or even lower.  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,  alcohol can impact driving ability even  after one drink.  The average drink in the United States can result in a blood alcohol concentration of between .02 and .04  for a light to moderate drinker.  This  is sufficient to affect the person’s vision as well as his or her ability to multitask.  Imagine a person with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.02 trying to drive as well as respond to phone calls at the same time.  His or her ability to multitask  is markedly reduced, significantly impacting his or her safety and the risks of being involved in a car accident.

When blood alcohol concentration level rises to .05, there is a significant deterioration in driving abilities.  At this point, the person is not legally drunk, but his coordination skills are impaired, and he or she might find it difficult to steer effectively. Vision is further reduced during this stage of alcohol intoxication, and he may find it difficult to track moving objects which makes it very dangerous when he is on the road and needs to observe the behaviors of drivers around him.  His or her ability to respond to emergency driving situations is also significantly lower at this point. All of these factors increase his or her chances of being involved in a car accident causing serious injuries  or even a fatal car accident.

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Senior motorists experience a range of deficiencies in their physical and mental faculties that make it difficult for them to drive safely and increase their risks of being involved in auto accidents.  Family members and caregivers have a major role to play in encouraging seniors to give up their car keys when they are no longer in a position to drive safely.

It is important to remember that seniors benefit both physically and mentally from the independence that comes from being mobile and able to drive.  However, there may come a time when your loved one is simply  unable to drive without being a risk to himself and others.  At  this point, you must step in and take away the car keys.  Remember that failing driving faculties may have more to do other issues than with the person’s age.  In other words, you must consider your loved one’s driving performances and abilities, and not just his age while deciding to curtail his driving privileges.

The best way to confirm whether your loved one’s abilities to drive safely are compromised, is to observe him when he is driving.  Look for prime indicators of decline in driving skills.  These can include failing to stop and check both ways for traffic, failure to stop at red or stop signs, or failure to stay in the lane while driving. A safe driver must be able to drive appropriately for the traffic and weather conditions, and must be able to take into consideration the driving of other motorists, motorcycles and other users of the road while driving.

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Speeding- related car accidents kill thousands of Americans every year.  Learn  how you can reduce  the chances of becoming another speeding auto accident statistic.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, car accidents caused directly by speeding drivers contributed to 12,151 fatalities in 2022.  The  federal agency has been concerned enough about   speeding to spearhead several campaigns against these behaviors, including one earlier this year called “Speeding Catches Up with You”. The campaign warned drivers that speeding accounts for one-third of all auto accident wrongful deaths every year and implored motorists to drive at safe and appropriate speeds.

It is  important to understand that there are just a few primary reasons why people end up driving at unsafe speeds, even when they know it is dangerous to do.  Number one among these causes is frustration and aggression caused by traffic conditions.  Being  stuck in traffic can be frustrating,  and can increase the risks of rash driving or speeding. Keep updated with the traffic conditions on your way to work,  so that you are prepared for bad traffic or can take alternate routes instead.

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As  the year’s peak motorcycling season descends on us, it is important for motorcyclists to evaluate all of their gear and make sure that everything is in prime condition to prevent personal injuries in an auto accident. Keeping the gear in good condition is an important safety measure.

The  summer months are the busiest motorcycling days of the year, and Georgia roads are likely to see an increase in the number of motorcycles over the next few weeks.  While motorists in cars and trucks enjoy plenty of protection in the form of seatbelts and airbag systems as well as crash avoidance tech, motorcyclists are not as lucky.  They must depend on sturdy and well -fitting helmets,  and high quality motorcycle gear to reduce their risk of injuries in an accident.  While motorcycles on their own have become safer over the past few years with new technology, motorcyclists  are ultimately responsible for reducing the severity and number of personal injuries they suffer in an auto accident through the kind of clothing and gear that they wear.

Wearing a helmet is the single most important thing you can do to reduce your risk of suffering head injuries in the event of  an auto accident. The state of Georgia recognizes the importance of helmets in preventing head injuries in an accident, and requires all motorcyclists, including passengers, to wear helmets.  Georgia helmet laws are not restricted to passengers or motorcyclists below a certain age.  No  matter what your  age or  experience levels, you must wear a helmet when you are out riding in Georgia.  Those laws, on their own, significantly reduce the number of motorcycle accident – related head injuries that occur in Georgia every year.

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An anti- speeding campaign that aims to tackle speeding across Georgia and several Southern States ends on July 21. These types of campaigns are extremely important in the effort to reduce the number of auto accidents involving catastrophic personal injuries and wrongful deaths.

Operation Southern Slow Down included Georgia as well as a few neighboring states and involved additional enforcement against speeding drivers. The campaign started on July 15, and targeted both speeding as well as aggressive or rash drivers.  The aim was to crack down on these drivers and pull them off the roads.  This was the eighth such campaign that included Georgia and the other Southern States,  and officials believed that this was the right time to remind drivers about the need to drive at safe speeds at all times.

The  need to remind drivers of the risks of speeding is especially stronger during summer when there are far more motorists on the road and when everyone is in a hurry to get to their holiday destinations.  Speeding  is one of the biggest killers on American roads with more than 11,000 car accident wrongful deaths in 2022 directly linked to high speeds.   The number of speeding-related car accidents in 2022 was  a 25% increase from the numbers in 2018.  Georgia continues to grapple with a large number of motorists  who drive at high speeds putting themselves and other motorists at risk of serious personal injury or even death.  In  2022,  approximately 422 car accident wrongful deaths in Georgia were  directly linked to speeding motorists. That was a significant 56% increase from the number of speeding-related auto accidents in 2018.

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Next month, federal transportation safety authorities will kick off a campaign that is aimed at helping motorists understand the dangers of running red lights. The campaign hopes to avoid serious personal injuries suffered by motorists and pedestrians each year by persons failing to obey traffic control signals.

Violation of stop lights is a major traffic offense that is responsible for thousands of car accidents every year. According to some estimates, every year, close to 1,000 people are killed in more than 100,000 car accidents caused by motorists who run stop signs.  These are some of the more common violations, and are responsible for many deadly intersection accidents annually. More than 50% of the people killed in these car accidents are pedestrians, bicyclists or passengers in vehicles involved in the accident.  These are absolutely devastating auto accidents, and very often, also high-speed accidents.

Next month will see a special commemoration aimed at preventing such accidents.   Stop On Red Week is marked during the first full week in August every year.  In 2024, that first week falls between August 4 and August 10.  The very first Stop On Red Week was commemorated by the Federal Highway Administration in 1995, and every year, during this week, the federal administration along with the National Safety Coalition promotes greater awareness of the dangers of driving recklessly or violating traffic safety rules. The Federal Highway Administration estimates that between 2004 and 2018, there were close to 12,000 car accident wrongful deaths caused directly by motorists running red lights.

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A new study  finds that  cells derived from a patient’s own fat can help patients with spinal cord personal injury experience sensation and movement in the affected areas.

Stem cell therapies have been a major part of breakthrough research into spinal cord personal injury treatment over the past few years.  The findings of a recent study were published in the journal Nature Communications.  A  clinical trial on 10 patients found  significant improvement in functions like movement, after treatment with stem cells taken from the patient’s own fat.

Out of the 10 participants in the clinical trial, the researchers found that seven subjects exhibited significant improvements in their symptoms.  These  improvements were measured according to the American Spinal injury Association Impairment Scale.  The  researchers found improvements in sensation in the affected areas against testing with light touches.  Participants  also exhibited improvements in motor strength.  Patients with spinal cord personal injuries may also suffer from failure to control bowel and bladder movements and, in the study, participants were able to recover voluntary anal contractions which can be predictive of improvement in bowel functions.

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Reducing the number of pedestrians killed in car accidents every year is key to reducing the number of auto accident wrongful deaths recorded across the country. Simple design interventions can help accomplish this goal.

According to a report titled Dangerous By Design by Smart Growth America, basic design interventions that may be simple to execute are often all that are required to reduce the number of auto accident fatalities involving pedestrians every year. Pedestrian crash deaths have been driving the increase in car and auto accident deaths across the country, and the expert consensus is that unless these deaths are minimized, there will be very little progress made in keeping our roads safer.

The U.S. does not boast the type of pedestrian –  friendly infrastructure that is the hallmark of  roads in Europe, but small steps can minimize the risk to pedestrians even on our roads.  The report Dangerous By Design finds that simple design interventions can reduce auto accident risks. For example, brighter lighting and illumination at key pedestrian -heavy areas can make a huge difference for pedestrians. A brightly-lit street means pedestrians can be seen clearly and avoided by motorists. Similarly, shorter crossing distances for pedestrians can also help. Multi-lane roads provide minimal opportunities for pedestrians to cross safely. Better designed medians and brighter markings at curbs can also help reduce the risk to pedestrians.  Even simple steps like more striped crosswalks and stop signs will alert motorists to pedestrian activity in the area. The use of pedestrian refuge islands and curb extensions  are also strategies that can  help minimize the risk of pedestrian accidents.

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All K -12 students in Georgia will now benefit from free access to traffic and road safety education thanks to a collaboration between the Georgia Department of Transportation and a leading education media organization.

Georgia has struggled with an increase in the number of car accident wrongful deaths across the state, with 1,800  people dying in auto accidents across the state in 2022.  There were more than 2,000 auto accidents recorded in the state that year involving drivers between the ages of 15 and 24.  Clearly, this is a high risk category of motorists and the Department of Transportation wants to ensure that drivers falling in this age category have access to all the resources that they need in order to drive safely and responsibly.

The new collaboration is called the Car and Road Safety Program, and is an initiative between the Georgia Department of Transportation and We Are Teachers which is a national educational advocacy program.  We Are Teachers conducted surveys across Georgia schools, working together with teachers in order to develop high quality materials that are specifically targeted to Georgia students.  The 5 year program will make available to students quality theoretical resources as well as the chance to take a virtual field trip anywhere in Georgia. There are also lots of interactive quizzes and plenty of activities to sharpen young motorists’ knowledge about traffic safety.

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There is a surprisingly high acceptance of anti-speeding technology in cars with many motorists in a recent study confirming that they would be comfortable with this technology in their cars.

Speeding is the number one cause of auto accidents in the United States, causing more car accidents every year than any other accident factor including drunk driving.  Speeding causes approximately 30% of all auto accident wrongful deaths across the country every year.  These destructive driving behaviors have become more prevalent since the pandemic, and the rise in speeding is being blamed for an increase in the number of people being killed in car accidents since 2020.

In 2022 alone, speeding killed more than 12,000 drivers. It is one of the most challenging behaviors for traffic safety experts and regulators to restrict with as many as 50% of all motorists admitting that they have exceeded speed limits by as much as 15 miles per hour while driving, at least once over the past month.

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