Dying to Get There? (Misstating highway death statistics)

Tech Central Station ^ | 05/16/2003 | Brock Yates

[Doe Eyes]

If an intoxicated driver is legally stopped at a red light and rear ended by a sober person, the accident is considered alcohol related.

[LittleJoe]

Sure, more reported alcohol related accidents justify more funds to combat the "problem".

[Badray]

You got it. I believe that most bureaucrats never want to solve a problem - no matter how egregious it is - they only want to manage the problem. If the problem is ever solved, their power, their glory, their money, and their job all go away.

We wouldn't want that, would we?

[LittleJoe]

You're right, it is alcohol related. What if one of the vehicles is an SUV. Do we now have SUV driving drunks causing carnage on the highways?

[LittleJoe]

You got it. I believe that most bureaucrats never want to solve a problem

lol...Gotta keep that bureaucracy growing!

[Bluewave]

You are so wrong. I too have read and analyzed the statistics. Without getting into a statistical whiz match, I would like to point out to you that virtually all automobile accidents are the result of moments of inattention on the part of someone operating an automobile.

Automobile accidents are random events which expose you and I to the same risk that is minimally reduced by "good driving." Good drivers get killed in automobile accidents.

Your chances of getting there are indeed excellent, each time you go, but over a lifetime, you are at great risk of not getting there once.

The highway death statistics represent a great failure of our government as high speed travel has increased on low speed roads.

[-YYZ-]

"I read somewhere that we'll spend many millions or dollars to save one life in our air transport system. People want this money to be spent because they're so afraid of flying. But we could save one life on the highway for roughly every $50,000 to $100,000 we spend to improve the design of our roads. There isn't as much political will for these expenditures because most people don't feel the same level of fear when they're driving."

So true. Of course, most people don't use their brains for much more than keeping their heart pumping and lungs moving air, and to keep their skull from collapsing. Most people just don't like to think about the risks involved in operating a motor vehicle. Many of those that do just buy the "Speed Kills!" propaganda - of course, they may be right - accidents that happen at higher speeds involve higher energies and risks of inury and death, and it doesn't appear that there's any chance at all that we're going to improve the overall quality of driving on our roads anytime soon. Europeans that come here are appalled by the quality of driving demonstrated on our streets and highways (yes, they do manage to do some things better over there, and driver training is one of them).