Every year the California roadways are inundated with traffic accidents. Many of these result in permanent injury and disability. Others result in death. Sadly, many of these accidents could have been prevented. This is true in regards to driver action as well as the design of roadways.
Causes of California road accidents
While there are no shortage of causes of car accidents, there are certain common causes that appear again and again in a large number of crashes. In California, this includes things like:
- aggressive driving
- distractions inside and outside the car
- drunk driving
- drug use
- failure to yield
- improper turns
- running stop signs and stop lights
- sleepiness
- speeding
- tailgating
- vehicle defects
- weather
Many of these are the fault of the driver. Avoiding aggressive and impaired driving can help reduce the rate of accidents on California roadways.
The installation of roundabouts
The design of roadways can also help to increase or decrease the number of auto accidents. Recently, there has been a move away from traditional intersections with stoplights and towards the construction of roundabouts. Instead of speeding through lights, drivers must slow down to allow traffic to move through after an opening. They are both more efficient and safer for drivers. It specifically helps to prevent crashes resulting from right turns and left turns. It also decreases head-on collisions and is safer for pedestrians. They also increase the flow of traffic and decrease wait times at intersections.
Overall, car accidents could certainly be decreased in the state of California. This can be done by influencing people to be more responsible drivers and designing roadways with safety in mind with things such as roundabouts. Such innovations can make a huge difference in regards to saving lives.