Tag / fatalities

by Adron

Maimed, Dismembered or Otherwise Injured

A lot is written about the 35k, give or take 5k per year that die needlessly from automobile wrecks throughout the United States. We are one of the more dangerous countries to drive or be around drivers in. Of those numbers 5k, give or take 1-2k, die needlessly while walking down the street and being impaled, smashed or otherwise killed by errant motorists. But there is an even bigger number out there, that number is the people who have been maimed*, dismembered* and now live with a permanent disability because of an errant motorist.

In the NHTSA Fact Sheets (linked below) the year 2012 alone, there were 184k recorded injuries, a 2 percent increase over 2011. In 2012 this was one of the leading causes of injure to 15-20 year olds (and a leading cause of death). There were more people injured by motorists in the United States than killed and injured combined from combat and operations in Afghanistan and Iraq in the last 5 years. Of these injuries the average insurance cost for treatment skyrockets to about.

The CDC points to a cost of $14k average per incident for bodily injury. That’s well beyond the basic average wreck that only claims damage to property (the car) of about $3-4k.

In the NHTSA “Not in Traffic Surveillance” the number of injuries hit an average of 91k per year between 2008 and 2011. It’s easy to make an educated guess and assume, the injuries still are very close to 91k per year today. These injuries are caused by absolutely irresponsible motorists, by not braking appropriately and rolling into or over people, a large number of people just walking away from their car without insuring it is stopped. The number of injuries from this behavior are enormous for the simple ease of preventing it.

For all of the deaths, related injuries and their respective costs, the numbers are staggering. Oregon is hit with a cost of $422 Million per year. This doesn’t even include the indirectly related costs that are often just as high. Washington hits a mighty $665 Million. These two states, which I included because I commonly point out how much better these states do than the other states, still do very poorly in these categories. Those are some serious numbers to think about, on top of this whole mess we call our transportation system in the United States.

So how does Washington and Oregon measure up compared to other advanced nations like the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, England or Germany? I’ll take a look at that data in the near future. Cheers, and seriously, be careful out there and have some respect for that motor vehicle you’re around, controlling or parking.

References & Definitions:

by Adron

…and a few more, for those that don’t understand biking.

http://btaoregon.org/2012/05/bta-calls-for-safety-changes-at-sw-3rd-and-madison/#comment-17013

Jonathan Maus states it really well,

“Hi. I fully support your request for people to have bicycle licenses and take tests. If we could find the funding and the if we could develop a program that would be able to test people about bicycle laws and best riding practices, that’d be great. That being said, I’d fully support a bicycle licensing program only if it meant that our roads and laws would be significantly upgraded in order to treat bicycle traffic with the same level of infrastructural and institutional respect that we currently offer trucks and other motor vehicles. Also, please keep in mind that the reason we must have a driver’s license to operate a motor vehicle is due in large part because those vehicles can very easily kill, maim and injure innocent bystanders with even the slightest lapse in judgment or operational error. The same simply cannot be said for bicycles.

The vast majority of people who ride bikes in Oregon also have a driver’s license. And I’d be willing to bet that they know the rules of the road more keenly and more accurately than people who don’t bike at all. Why? Because their life depends on it.“

To add to his quote. Keep in mind that EVERY day someone is killed by someone else’s inattention at the wheel. For every person killed 2-3 are maimed and permanently debilitated, often damned to disability for the rest of their lives. Almost always these people are innocent until this happens, then they are innocents that are permanently scarred.

Next blog entry, I promise transit + a more positive note. The people I know that have been killed or maimed by inattentive drivers lately has me on a tear. We need to design better roads, keep drivers under control, and stop giving them a “get out of jail” free card at every turn. The double standard with cars and other dangerous things is ridiculous. If people treated cars like guns, we’d have mass banning campaigns nationwide with millions of people marching against them. But instead the population is generally oblivious and care-less about this fact. Not that I’m saying ban either of these things, but we should work toward a safer and better infrastructure system that isn’t so damnably dependent on automobiles.

In the end, it would be better for ALL of us. It would especially have been better for all those dead. The 19 year old girl that was an art student. The 29 year old girl that was merely riding home from work. The expectant mother who was broadsided by an errant driver. The now dismembered young ladies that were waiting for the walk sign to change on the corner. The young brothers riding together, 9 and 13 respectively.

Let it hit home. Pay attention. Remember what you yield when you’re driving. At least try a little harder everyday to pay attention and not become the next killer.