Speeding Facts, Statistics, and Consequences in Washington State

Speeding is one of those social behaviors that put everyone in jeopardy. The reason for this is because speed limits allow pedestrians and other drivers to have a reasonable expectation for how fast a car is approaching so that they can walk across the street, merge into traffic, or change lanes. If a driver is exceeding those expectations then the pedestrian or other driver can miscalculate and that’s when car accidents and serious injuries occur.

Speed limits are also not arbitrary suggestions. They are low speeds specifically set in different areas because of the hazards of speed upon the surrounding community. Many streets have lots of children, others are high foot traffic areas, and others have low visibility. Whatever the reason, they apply to everyone regardless of the capability of the car or the experience of the driver.

Hopefully the following data collected from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), and the Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC) will help convince people that speeding is a terrible idea.

Speeding Statistics

The detriment of speeding is the biggest concern. Speed is the difference between skidding to a stop and rolling multiple times. From 1996-2005, 2,141 drivers were involved in speeding-related fatal collisions in Washington State.

Of these drivers:

• 82.3% were male
• 56.6% were 15-30 years old
• 49.2% were not wearing seat belts
• 56.8% had BACs at or above .08
• 21.8% had revoked, expired, suspended or cancelled licenses
• 14.2% had prior collisions
• 27.5% had prior suspensions or revocations
• 33.4% had prior speeding violations
• 4.8% had prior DUIs
• 29.4% had other prior violations  [FARS]

The trends related to speeding within Washington State remain relatively consistent with 35% to 67% of observed vehicles traveling at or above the posted speed on all highways combined.

In December 2007, the place with the most vehicles speeding was the town of Preston on Interstate 90 just east of Issaquah. Preston recorded 11, 913 vehicles traveling at or above 90 mph, which averages to 132 vehicles per day. The odd thing is that the speeding incidents occur throughout the day with no dominant time. Approximately 61% of vehicles traveling at or above 90 mph were traveling westbound toward Bellevue and Seattle.

Speeding Consequences

A crash is considered speeding-related if the driver was charged with a speeding-related offense or if an officer indicated that racing, driving too fast for conditions, or exceeding the posted speed limit was a contributing factor in the crash.

• Speeding Causes Wrecks – It is one of the biggest factors that contributes to traffic accidents. The monetary cost to society of speeding-related crashes is estimated by NHTSA to be $40.4 billion per year. In 2007, speeding was to blame in 31% of all fatal crashes, and 13,040 lives were lost in speeding-related crashes.
• Age of Driver – In 2007, only 49% of speeding passenger vehicle drivers under age 21 who were involved in fatal crashes were wearing seat belts at the time of the crash. That is opposed to 67% of non-speeding drivers in the same age group were restrained. For drivers age 21 and older, the percentage of speeding drivers involved in fatal crashes who were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash was 43%, but 72% of nonspeeding drivers in fatal crashes were wearing them.
• The Cost of Speeding – Vehicle crashes cost society an estimated $7,300 per second…that right, per second. The total economic cost of crashes was estimated at $230.6 billion in 2000. That same year the cost of speeding-related crashes was estimated to be $40.4 billion — $76,865 per minute or $1,281 per second.
• Vehicle Control and Reaction Time – Speeding reduces a driver’s ability to take and adjust to curves or objects in the roadway. It considerably extends the distance necessary to stop a vehicle. It also increases the distance a vehicle travels while the driver reacts to a dangerous situation.
• Offenders – Out of all of the offenders, young males are the most likely to be speeding. The relative proportion of speeding-related crashes to all crashes decreases with increasing driver age. In 2005, 38% of the male drivers between the ages 15 to 20 who were involved in fatal crashes were speeding at the time of the crash.

• License Status – In 2005, a staggering 22% of speeding drivers involved in fatal crashes had an invalid license at the time of the crash, compared with 11% of nonspeeding drivers.
• Roads – 86% of all speeding-related fatalities occurred on roads that were not interstate highways.
• Road Conditions – Speeding was a factor in 28% of the fatal crashes that occurred on dry roads in 2005. In 33% of fatality wrecks that occurred on wet roads speed was a factor. Not surprisingly, 51% of the fatal crashes that occurred when there was snow or slush on the road and 58% of those that occurred on icy roads. Speeding was involved in over one-quarter (27%) of the fatal crashes that occurred in road construction zones.

Car and Truck Accidents

As you can see speeding is one of the most detrimental of the common social behaviors. Saving a few minutes and not being patient can actually kill someone. It can result in a vehicular homicide charge, which has a mandatory prison sentence and comes with all of the social bells and whistles of being an ex-felon once you leave jail such as problems finding employment of any kind, housing, or being able to travel or vote for that matter.

If you or a loved one have sustained a serious personal injury or been killed in a car accident due to the negligence of another driver it is important that you find experienced council that can represent your interests and protect you from the confusing insurance and medical industry chaos. Call Phillips Webster for a consultation.

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• Vehicle Accidents
• Constructing a Personal Injury Lawsuit
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