Motor vehicle accidents - Articles - Page 6

A FairWarning Story

Dubious record for highway safety agency in public information lawsuits

March 7, 2019

After a Florida driver was killed in a crash in 2016 while his Tesla was in “Autopilot” mode, regulators assured the public that Tesla’s autonomous driving system was safe. An investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that after a key component called Autosteer was added, crash rates in Tesla cars had dropped.

In West Texas, growing oil production comes with deadly highways

March 7, 2019

The fracking boom that’s made the U.S. the world’s top oil producer shows no signs of slowing down. But in Texas, the boom’s had what the state is calling an “unintended consequence," as oilfield highways have become overwhelmed with heavy truck traffic, there’s been an uptick in the number of deadly crashes. Officials are exploring solutions to this ongoing problem.

Oil and gas boom wreaks havoc on southeast New Mexico highways

March 6, 2019

“With the oil field traffic, everybody is in a hurry,” said Heather Lopez about the roads in Eddy County and neighboring Lea County. “Everybody runs like it is the end of days. Drivers get impatient. Trucks pull out in front of cars. They figure they are bigger and you are going to stop.” Figures compiled by Eddy County show there were 17 roadway fatalities in the county in both 2018 and 2017 and seven in 2016. In Lea County, according to the New Mexico State Police, there were 24 traffic fatalities in 2018, 12 in 2017 and 10 in 2016.

“Vulnerable road users” get special attention from NTSB

February 28, 2019

Motorcyclists and pedestrians were the focus of two recent National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reports which used analyses from accident investigations to form recommendations to enhance safety for the two groups going forward. Motorcyclists—motorcycle riders and their passengers—have the highest risk of fatal injury among all motor vehicle users.

A FairWarning Story

Apple has swatted away distracted driving lawsuits without much trouble so far

Myron Levin

February 28, 2019

Garrett Wilhelm was chatting with the Facetime app on his Apple iPhone, police say, as he sped along an interstate highway northwest of Dallas on the day before Christmas in 2014. He crashed his SUV into a sedan carrying a young family, killing five-year-old Moriah Modisette and injuring her parents and sister.

Could a dropped Thermos bottle have caused deadly bus accident?

February 25, 2019

A dropped Thermos bottle lodged between the brake and accelerator pedals could not be ruled out as a possible cause for the fatal 2017 collision between two buses in Flushing, New York, according to a report released by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). On Sept. 18, 2017, at 6:16 a.m., a motorcoach operated by Dahlia Group Inc. collided with a New York City Transit Authority bus at the intersection of Northern Boulevard and Main Street in Flushing. The motorcoach was traveling 60 mph — twice the posted speed limit.

A FairWarning Story

Deaths mount from high-speed police pursuits, despite calls to restrict them

Thomas Frank

February 22, 2019

The high-speed chase through residential streets in Evansville, Indiana ended badly, as police pursuits often do. A Chevy Impala, which police mistakenly thought had been stolen, blasted through a stop sign at 74 mph and smashed into the passenger side of a PT Cruiser crossing the intersection. A young family was inside.

From NIOSH:

Towing industry death rate 15X the average for private industry

Until now, nonfatal injuries and deaths in the motor vehicle towing industry have been largely overlooked

February 21, 2019

The motor vehicle towing industry has a higher rate of work-related injury and death compared to other industries, according to NIOSH research presented at the National Occupational Injury Research Symposium in Morgantown, West Virginia. Yet studies historically have focused on the safety of other first responders, including law enforcement officers, fire fighters, and emergency medical services workers.

Did modifications doom stretch limo passengers?

February 19, 2019

Did changes that allowed a 2001 Ford Excursion stretch limousine to carry 18 people contribute to the horrific death toll in an October 6, 2018 accident in upstate New York? That’s one of the question the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is attempting to answer in its investigation into the tragedy, which killed the driver and all 18 passengers in the limo – many of them related to each other – and also claimed the lives of two pedestrians.

Older drivers at work

February 16, 2019

Older workers (those ages 55 and older) bring extensive skills, knowledge, and experience built over the course of a lifespan. However, age-related physical and mental changes may affect older workers’ driving. While such changes are normal, they also put older drivers at a greater risk of dying if they are in a motor vehicle crash.