New Report Reveals Hoosiers Face Almost Triple the Risk of a Fatal Crash as Drivers in Illinois
A recent study by financiers at WalletHub compared all fifty states in several safety areas, from unemployment rates to mass shootings. One of its most important findings involves road safety across the country. In this new report, Illinois is shown to be much safer for drivers than Indiana for a serious or fatal motor vehicle accident.
Read the full study here, where Illinois ranks 9th in the country, compared to Indiana coming in as the 24th state in road safety.
How was this determined? Each state was scored on several different factors for road safety. These included:
- Traffic Indiscipline (e.g., Distracted or Reckless Driving), described as “a composite metric that measures incidents due to poor behavior: phone use, speeding, aggressive acceleration, harsh braking, and poor turning;”
- Fatalities per 100 Million Vehicle Miles of Travel;
- DUIs per Capita (Drunk Driving Arrests);
- Pedestrian & Pedalcyclist (Bicyclists) Fatality Rate per Capita;
- Share of Uninsured Drivers;
- Road Quality; and
- Driving Laws (such as seat belt laws, all-rider helmet laws, etc.).
As advocates for accident victims and their loved ones who have fallen victim to a serious or fatal crash caused by one or more of these risk factors, we understand how important it is to shine a light on these dangers in the hopes that our roads will be safer in the future and lives will be saved.
Consider the following, with more detail provided in our earlier discussions:
Distracted or Reckless Driving in Illinois and Indiana
Distracted or reckless driving involves many different things, alone or in combination. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration defines it as “… any activity that diverts attention from driving, including talking or texting on your phone, eating and drinking, talking to people in your vehicle, fiddling with the stereo, entertainment or navigation system — anything that takes your attention away from the task of safe driving. Texting is the most alarming distraction. Sending or reading a text takes your eyes off the road for 5 seconds. At 55 mph, that’s like driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed.”
The agency’s final warning: “Any non-driving activity you engage in is a potential distraction and increases your risk of crashing.”
Driver distractions have caused far too many traffic fatalities in our area. For more detail on distracted and reckless driving in Indiana and Illinois, read:
- Coronavirus and Fatal Car Crashes: Fatality Rates Jump Despite Emptier Roads;
- Hands-Free Devices Do Not Make Driving Safer: Cognitive Driver Distraction Using Hands-Free Phone;
- Are Dashboards Deadly? Vehicle Infotainment Systems and Fatal Accidents;
- Indiana and Illinois: Deadliest Driving Conditions for Fatal Motor Vehicle Accidents (road rage);
- Running Red Lights: High Risk of Deadly RLR Accident at an Intersection in Indiana or Illinois; and
- Speeding and Serious or Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes in Illinois or Indiana.
Drunk Driving Accident Dangers in Indiana and Illinois
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), each day in this country, 29 people perish in motor vehicle accidents where an alcohol-impaired driver is behind the wheel. The CDC calculates this statistic to be a new Drunk Driving victim dies every hour (e.g., every 50 minutes).
Drunk driving is illegal in both Indiana and Illinois, but Driving Under the Influence (DUI) arrests after a fatal accident does little to help the fatality victim and their loved ones. For more details, read:
- Drunk Driving Accident: Who’s Legally Liable? Answer is Different for Indiana and Illinois;
- Liable for Drunk Driving Accidents in Indiana and Illinois: Social Party Hosts, Bars, Restaurants; and
- Drinking and Driving: The Ongoing Fight against DUI Car Accidents in Indiana and Illinois.
The Risk of Fatal Accidents Facing Pedestrians and Bicyclists in Illinois and Indiana
According to the CDC, in 2017 there were 5,977 pedestrians who were killed in traffic crashes in the United States, calculated to be about one death every 88 minutes. The NHTSA reports that pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities jumped 32% from 2008 to 2017. For more, read:
- Pedestrian Accident Deaths in Indiana and Illinois: The Rising Danger of Dying While Walking;
- The Primary Cause of Fatal Child Pedestrian Accidents is the Vehicle; and
- Cyclist Deaths: Rising Danger of Fatal Bike Accidents in Indiana and Illinois.
Fatal Crashes and Road Quality in Indiana and Illinois
Some roads are inherently more dangerous than others. This may be due to poor repair and maintenance over time, where the infrastructure creates a danger for motorists. It may be caused by the characteristics of the roadway, as well. Hoosiers are well aware that our rural routes are riskier than driving in an urban setting. For more, read:
- The High Risk of a Deadly Crash on Rural Roads in Indiana and Illinois;
- Deadly Roads and Bridges: Dangerous Infrastructure in Indiana and Illinois; and
- Road Quality and Fatal Accidents: the Rural Road Dangers of Indiana and Illinois.
How Driving Laws in Illinois and Indiana May Contribute to Fatal Motor Vehicle Accidents
Each state enacts its own driving laws, and both Indiana and Illinois are known for having less stringent motorcycle helmet laws than other parts of the country which some safety advocates argue increases the likelihood of a fatal accident. Our safety belt laws also vary insofar as who has to buckle up (driver, passenger, front seat, back east, child, etc.) and what is required for different types of vehicles. For more, see:
- Helmets and Head Injuries: Construction, Football, Bicycles, Motorcycles, and More;
- Sturgis Motorcycle Rally Begins Next Week: Motorcycle Safety Spotlight; CDC Argues Helmets Reduce Risk of Brain Injury by 69%;
- Three Indianapolis School Bus Crashes This Morning: Safety Issues for School Buses; Should There Be Seat Belts?;
- Is Your Teenager Wearing a Seat Belt While in the Car? Are You? New 2015 CDC Warnings Released;
- NHTSA Finds More Than a Third of Children Killed in Crashes Were Not in Car Seats or Wearing Seat Belts; and
- Passenger Van Accidents: Causes and Liability.
Justice for Victims of a Fatal Motor Vehicle Accident in Indiana or Illinois
This new evaluation of our state roadways serves as a warning to all of us that driving in our part of the country can be dangerous.
Drivers in both Illinois and Indiana must be aware of the specific dangers facing them as they share the roadways with others who may be operating their motor vehicles in a distracted or reckless manner, or while they are impaired by alcohol.
It is also important to recognize that some of our streets and highways provide dangers themselves, from rural routes to risky intersections, and drivers must be alert to the possibility of road hazards.
For a list of specific roadways in our part of the country that are notoriously perilous, see: Most Dangerous Roads in Illinois and Indiana: High Risk for Fatal Accidents.
Anyone driving the roads of Indiana and Illinois must be aware of the dangers of a fatal auto accident or truck crash. It is a reality we face here in the Crossroads of America. Please be careful out there!
