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Though car crashes in Arizona can be attributed to many different causes, it is particularly troubling when they result from something the driver intentionally does or fails to do. The victims of these kinds of car accidents and their families may struggle to come to terms with what happened, especially if when they result in serious injury or fatality. Experts are always working to determine ways to reduce crashes, and one recent troubling statistic has them concerned. Fatalities resulting from drivers running red lights are the highest they’ve been in 10 years.
The study was conducted by AAA and released in Aug. 2019. It found that deaths due to running a red light increased 28% since 2012. In just one year, 939 people died due to this type of accident. Arizona has the highest rate per capita, at 352 deaths from 2008 to 2017. AAA also found that while an overwhelming majority of drivers agree that this is unsafe driving behavior, a third of drivers admit they’ve driven through a red light in the last 30 days.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety concurred with the study’s findings and advocated for more red-light cameras at intersections. IIHS representatives say that large cities can reduce red-light running crash rates by 21% with cameras. AAA released several suggestions for drivers to help prevent these kinds of accidents, including driving defensively and waiting to go through an intersection once all cars have stopped.
Despite the best efforts of motorists everywhere, these types of car accidents can still happen to anyone. No one should ever have to be the victim of a careless driver, but for those who are, civil litigation may be the best option to hold a responsible party accountable. A personal injury attorney here in Arizona with extensive experience in this area of the law may be the best advocate for those in this situation.