Drivers Choosing to Speed Must Recognize the Rising Risk of a Fatal Crash
A few weeks ago, the Governors Highway Safety Association published its 2019 “Spotlight on Highway Safety, Speeding Away From Zero: Rethinking a Forgotten Safety Challenge,” written by Tara Casanova Powell with contributions by Russ Martin and Madison Forker of the GHSA.
Data was collected not only from federal agencies but also from all the states, to confirm the increasing risk of fatal crashes due to drivers exceeding the speed limit in this country.
The GHSA study reiterates the concern we voiced in our last post: in today’s culture driving over the speed limit is considered an acceptable thing to do, because people put a priority on minimizing their travel time, they do not obey the speed limit signs.
Speeding and Fatal Crashes: Why Speeding Kills People
The faster the motor vehicle is being driven on a roadway, the higher the risk of a fatal accident. This is because speeding will increase not only (1) the likelihood that someone will be in a serious crash, but (2) that the force of impact in that collision will be severe.
The GHSA analysis points to several research studies that confirm higher speeds as a significant factor in determining injury severity. See, e.g., Hu, Wen, and Anne T. McCartt. “Effects of automated speed enforcement in Montgomery County, Maryland, on vehicle speeds, public opinion, and crashes.” Traffic injury prevention17.sup1 (2016): 53-58; GHSA Report, page 4.
The Increasing Force of Impact in a Crash Where the Driver is Speeding
When someone decides to drive faster, say from 40 to 60 mph (a 50% increase), the GHSA Report explains that the energy increases by 125%. This increase in force in a crash is directly related to the speed at the time of a crash.
The force involved in an accident can result in one or more fatalities. The type of motor vehicle involved in the accident can make all the difference in whether or not the accident victim survives the crash.
Passenger Vehicles Are Vulnerable to High Forces
For instance, someone driving (or occupying) a sedan, coupe, SUV, or other standard passenger vehicle is more likely to die in a high-speed crash than someone in a heavy-duty truck. This is because passenger vehicles are not made to withstand the forces involved in a high-speed impact. The structure of the motor vehicle will fail; the “survival space” where the driver and his or her passengers are sitting will be compromised. GHSA Report, page 4.
Restraint Systems Are Not Designed for High Forces
Force in a high speed accident will also play into the safety features of the motor vehicle. Currently, things like airbags and safety belts are not built to withstand higher levels of force. GHSA Report, page 4.
Speeding and Deadly Rollover Accidents
The force of impact involved in an accident where a driver has been speeding can be exponentially dangerous in certain types of accidents. For instance, speeding is often the cause of death in rollover crashes.
Rollovers and High Speeds
What is a rollover accident? These are crashes where the driver of a motor vehicle loses control and the sedan, SUV, pickup, or minivan flips one or more times before coming to a halt.
Certain types of motor vehicles are more prone to rollover. These are vehicles with higher centers of gravity (like vans, SUVs, and pickup trucks). However, any motor vehicle is capable of rolling over in a crash in the right circumstances with the right amount of force.
No matter the type of vehicle, one of the key factors in deadly rollover accidents is speeding. According to SaferCar.gov, around 40% of fatal rollover crashes involve excessive speeding; around 75% of these deadly rollovers involved a posted speed limit of 55 mph.
For more on rollover accidents, read:
- Roof Strength in Rollover Accidents: Deadly Risk of Roof Crush in Cars, Vans, SUVs, Pickups
- Rollover Accidents in Indiana and Illinois: Cars, Vans, Pickups, SUVs
- Rollover Danger: What You Need to Know Driving Roads in Indiana and Illinois.
Vulnerable Road Users: Pedestrians and Bicyclists Die Because of Speeding
More pedestrians are dying in motor vehicle crashes today than in the past 20 years. Bicyclists are also extremely likely to perish in any accident involving excessive speeds.
The average risk of death for a pedestrian in a speeding accident rises with the rate of speed. From the GHSA Report, we know that:
- The pedestrian’s risk of death reaches 10% at an impact speed of 23 mph;
- The pedestrian’s risk of death reaches 25% at 32 mph;
- The pedestrian’s risk of death reaches 75% at 50 mph; and
- The pedestrian’s risk of death reaches 90% at 58 mph.
How Many Fatal Crashes in Indiana and Illinois Are Caused by Speeding?
In its research findings, the GHSA Report details how many speeding-related deaths occurred in each state, as compared with the overall number of traffic fatalities during the year 2017. The results were chilling, particularly for those of us living in Illinois.
From the GHSA Report, speeding-related deaths as a percent of total motor vehicle deaths in 2017:
Illinois: 42%
A shocking forty-two percent (42%) of fatal crashes in the State of Illinois involved speeding.
Indiana: 23%
Still too high, but almost half as dangerous for Hoosiers, the study found that 23% of fatal crashes in the State of Indiana involved speeding.
Speeding Fatalities and Liability Claims in Illinois and Indiana
Both Illinois and Indiana have substantial protections in place for the victims of a fatal crash caused by speeding, as well as for the victim’s family. While the state laws are not identical, those who are injured or killed in a motor vehicle accident that may have had speeding as a contributing factor will be able to seek justice for what has occurred.
These fatal crashes must be investigated in order to determine the reasons why the accident happened even if the police report or eyewitness statements clearly reflect a driver who was speeding.
While speeding may be the basis of a negligence claim against the driver who chose to ignore the speed limit, there may be other factors to consider.
Was he or she under the influence? Was the design of the vehicle (a weak roof, for instance) part of the reason that people died in the crash? Legally, there may be liability for the driver as well as other defendants (including the car maker in a defective design claim).
The new GHSA Report warns that almost half of all fatal crashes in Illinois involve someone speeding, and almost a fourth of all deadly accidents in Indiana have a driver driving over the speed limit. Speeding kills, despite the cultural acceptance of a driver ignoring posted speed limits. Please be careful out there!
