Officers around the county will step up patrols in an effort to reduce speed-related crashes on city and county roadways as part of a grant awarded by the state. The grant will pay for more patrols through Aug. 1st.

Just last month a young man was killed in Stanwood when he lost control of his car. His car hit a tree and he died at the scene. Another man from Granite Falls died earlier this month after he lost control of his vehicle and hit a utility pole off Engebretson Road. Investigators believe that speed was a major reason that in both of these crashes happened.

But those are just two examples of the many speeding fatalities in recent years. There have been 90 people killed in Snohomish County in speed-related crashes between 2004 and 2008.

“Data shows that 87 percent of the people killed in high-speed crashes are men. Nearly half of those are 25 or younger,” said Tracy McMillan, manager for the county’s DUI and Target Zero Safety Task Force.

“About half of the high-speed fatality crashes are on Saturdays or Sundays and involve one vehicle,” she added.

Police will have “zero tolerance” for speeders, McMillan said.

These kinds of clamp downs don’t stop the crime, but what they do is show serious consequences of breaking such laws as speed limits before the consequences are manifested in ways such as fatal car accidents.

If you or someone you know have been killed or injured in a car accident it is imperative that you find legal council that can walk you through the insurance and litigation process. Call Phillips Webster for a consultation.

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• Washington Law and Car Accidents
• Car Accidents and Insurance Coverage
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Speed limits are also not arbitrary suggestions. They are low speeds specifically set in different areas because of the hazards of speed upon the surrounding community. Many streets have lots of children, others are high foot traffic areas, and others have low visibility. Whatever the reason, they apply to everyone regardless of the capability of the car or the experience of the driver.

Hopefully the following data collected from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), and the Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC) will help convince people that speeding is a terrible idea.

Speeding Statistics

The detriment of speeding is the biggest concern. Speed is the difference between skidding to a stop and rolling multiple times. From 1996-2005, 2,141 drivers were involved in speeding-related fatal collisions in Washington State.

Of these drivers:

• 82.3% were male
• 56.6% were 15-30 years old
• 49.2% were not wearing seat belts
• 56.8% had BACs at or above .08
• 21.8% had revoked, expired, suspended or cancelled licenses
• 14.2% had prior collisions
• 27.5% had prior suspensions or revocations
• 33.4% had prior speeding violations
• 4.8% had prior DUIs
• 29.4% had other prior violations  [FARS]

The trends related to speeding within Washington State remain relatively consistent with 35% to 67% of observed vehicles traveling at or above the posted speed on all highways combined.

In December 2007, the place with the most vehicles speeding was the town of Preston on Interstate 90 just east of Issaquah. Preston recorded 11, 913 vehicles traveling at or above 90 mph, which averages to 132 vehicles per day. The odd thing is that the speeding incidents occur throughout the day with no dominant time. Approximately 61% of vehicles traveling at or above 90 mph were traveling westbound toward Bellevue and Seattle.

Speeding Consequences

A crash is considered speeding-related if the driver was charged with a speeding-related offense or if an officer indicated that racing, driving too fast for conditions, or exceeding the posted speed limit was a contributing factor in the crash.

• Speeding Causes Wrecks – It is one of the biggest factors that contributes to traffic accidents. The monetary cost to society of speeding-related crashes is estimated by NHTSA to be $40.4 billion per year. In 2007, speeding was to blame in 31% of all fatal crashes, and 13,040 lives were lost in speeding-related crashes.
• Age of Driver – In 2007, only 49% of speeding passenger vehicle drivers under age 21 who were involved in fatal crashes were wearing seat belts at the time of the crash. That is opposed to 67% of non-speeding drivers in the same age group were restrained. For drivers age 21 and older, the percentage of speeding drivers involved in fatal crashes who were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash was 43%, but 72% of nonspeeding drivers in fatal crashes were wearing them.
• The Cost of Speeding – Vehicle crashes cost society an estimated $7,300 per second…that right, per second. The total economic cost of crashes was estimated at $230.6 billion in 2000. That same year the cost of speeding-related crashes was estimated to be $40.4 billion — $76,865 per minute or $1,281 per second.
• Vehicle Control and Reaction Time – Speeding reduces a driver’s ability to take and adjust to curves or objects in the roadway. It considerably extends the distance necessary to stop a vehicle. It also increases the distance a vehicle travels while the driver reacts to a dangerous situation.
• Offenders – Out of all of the offenders, young males are the most likely to be speeding. The relative proportion of speeding-related crashes to all crashes decreases with increasing driver age. In 2005, 38% of the male drivers between the ages 15 to 20 who were involved in fatal crashes were speeding at the time of the crash.

• License Status – In 2005, a staggering 22% of speeding drivers involved in fatal crashes had an invalid license at the time of the crash, compared with 11% of nonspeeding drivers.
• Roads – 86% of all speeding-related fatalities occurred on roads that were not interstate highways.
• Road Conditions – Speeding was a factor in 28% of the fatal crashes that occurred on dry roads in 2005. In 33% of fatality wrecks that occurred on wet roads speed was a factor. Not surprisingly, 51% of the fatal crashes that occurred when there was snow or slush on the road and 58% of those that occurred on icy roads. Speeding was involved in over one-quarter (27%) of the fatal crashes that occurred in road construction zones.

Car and Truck Accidents

As you can see speeding is one of the most detrimental of the common social behaviors. Saving a few minutes and not being patient can actually kill someone. It can result in a vehicular homicide charge, which has a mandatory prison sentence and comes with all of the social bells and whistles of being an ex-felon once you leave jail such as problems finding employment of any kind, housing, or being able to travel or vote for that matter.

If you or a loved one have sustained a serious personal injury or been killed in a car accident due to the negligence of another driver it is important that you find experienced council that can represent your interests and protect you from the confusing insurance and medical industry chaos. Call Phillips Webster for a consultation.

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The issue is such that October 18th – October 24th has been declared to be “Teen Driver Safety Week” in Washington, and the event is an effort to bring awareness to the risks involved with young drivers and to help alert anyone to steps that can be taken that lead to safer roads and fewer problems for young Washington residents who get behind the wheel.

One look at some basic statistics can explain why such a week has been planned. According to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC), 140 people between the ages of 16 and 19 have been killed in auto accidents in Washington, and more than 400 have been seriously injured. The leading causes of these accidents appears to include speeding, drug and/or alcohol impairment, inattention or a combination thereof.

Young drivers are also much more likely to play loud music, joy ride and use their phones for calls and/or texting while driving, all of which only adds to the dangers that these young drivers incur. These risks also create danger for anyone else who happens to be sharing the road with them at any given time, thereby creating a situation where the state government decided to take action.

This is also the reason that insurance premiums tend to be more expensive for young or new drivers than for almost anyone else. The insurance industry assesses risks, and clearly they see young drivers as the biggest risk within this context. If you or someone you love has been injured or worse by a young driver in Washington or by anyone else, you need to contact a Washington auto accident lawyer at Phillips & Webster today to schedule a free initial consultation.

According to the Kitsap Sun:

“A 19-year-old Allyn man was driving a 2007 Ford Focus west on the 700 block of East Lake Shore Drive in Lakeland Village at about 10:15 p.m. when the car left the roadway and crashed, deputies said.

An unidentified male passenger was seriously injured, said Mason County Chief Deputy Dean Byrd, and taken to Harborview Medical Center by helicopter. He is listed in serious condition at the Seattle hospital.

A 17-year-old Allyn girl was taken to Mason General Hospital in Shelton and later flown to Harborivew. She is listed in serious but stable condition, Byrd said.”

The driver was booked on suspicion of DUI, and investigators have yet to gather and publish all of the evidence that relates to the accident. Regardless, the driver will likely face not only criminal, but also civil liability. These situations are all too common, and if you have been injured as a result of the negligence of a drunk driver, you need to take preliminary steps to obtain the information you need regarding your legal rights and options as you recover from your injuries. Contact the auto accidents lawyers at Phillips & Webster today to schedule a free initial consultation.

According to the Seattle Times:

“A man suspected of causing an accident that injured seven people in Bothell Wednesday night tried to flee from police by running from a hospital where he was being treated for minor injuries, the State Patrol says. But he left behind his clothes.

Just after 6 p.m., the State Patrol began receiving 911 calls from witnesses who reported a white 1998 Dodge Dakota pickup being driven at more than 100 mph on the southbound lanes of Interstate 405 in Bothell. The pickup struck a Mazda minivan carrying two women and four children. The State Patrol reports the impact forced the minivan across four lanes of traffic and onto a dirt median, where it overturned.”

The man was quickly apprehended by police. Clearly, driving over 100 mph could be construed as negligent at least, and perhaps even reckless. Luckily, no one was killed or permanently injured in the crash, but the fact remains that the driver could face liability on both the civil and criminal fronts based on the results of the investigation of the accident.

If you or someone you love has been injured as a result of an auto accident, you need to contact the attorneys at Phillips & Webster as soon as possible to schedule a free initial consultation.

According to the Yakima Herald:

” A 23-year-old Ellensburg woman was seriously injured early Sunday after a rollover accident about six miles northeast of Ellensburg.

Investigators say speeding and alcohol are possible factors in the accident, which took place around 1 a.m. on Rader Road, between Naneum and Fairview roads, according to a news release by the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office.”

Authorities stated that the driver drifted off to towards the right shoulder, overcorrected and wound up in the ditch, where the SUV proceeded to roll over several times. The passenger was ejected from the vehicle, bringing into question whether or not she was wearing a seat belt. The passenger is listed in serious condition at a local hospital.

Unfortunately, there are several factors that need to be analyzed before the cause of the crash and any exposure to criminal and civil liability can be identified. As is always the case, though, the facts will be revealed and appropriate action will be taken. If you or someone you love has been injured in an SUV rollover accident and/or an accident that involved alcohol, you need to contact the personal injury lawyers at Phillips & Webster to schedule a free initial consultation.

When this occurs, it immediately creates a dangerous situation, particularly when it occurs on two-lane roads with traffic moving in both directions. Some who are being passed simply realize that they are moving at a slower pace than they desire, and accelerate in an attempt to get to their preferred speed. Others, however, seem to view being passed as some sort of challenge and accelerate in an attempt to prompt the passer to slow down and move back into the right lane behind them.

When this occurs, it not only creates a situation of risk for the person who’s attempting to pass, but also for the person being passed and any vehicles that could be coming in the opposite direction. It takes mere seconds for a disaster to unfold on the roads, and collisions at high rates of speed often leave devastating results behind. If you are being passed, simply maintain your rate of speed until the other driver completes his or her maneuver, as it’s the safest course of action to take.

If you or someone you love has been injured in an accident like this, you need to contact the auto accident attorneys at Phillips & Webster immediately to schedule a free initial consultation.

Tragically, that appears to be what happened at approximately 2 a.m. According to King 5:

“Seattle Police say the two motorcycles crashed around 2 a.m., but there is no indication that they hit each other. The debris field stretches over two city blocks.

Why they crashed is still a mystery, but speed was likely a factor.

Neighbors say the two men were members of the “Drama Boyz” motorcycle club.”

The crash created such a wide field of debris that it halted the Seattle light rail system for a few hours until the path could be cleared. This debris field appears to back up witness claims that the bikers were traveling at a high rate of speed. Otherwise, it will take some time to definitively identify the cause of the crash.

As can be seen, motorcycle accidents can happen at any time and in any place, and a high percentage of motorcycle accidents result in serious injuries and fatalities. If you ride a motorcycle or you’ve been otherwise harmed in a motorcycle accident, you need to contact the personal injury attorneys at Phillips & Webster today to schedule a free initial consultation.

AAA published another study in this regard, and a look at the overall statistics were quite troubling for many reasons. For instance, from 2003 – 2007, there were more than 192,000 fatal crashes in the United States, and almost 213,000 people were killed as a result. More than 50% of fatal crashes involved some form of aggressive driving. In terms of those crashes that could be measured for the statistical compilation, the following statistics were reported in terms of the leading causes of fatal accidents:

• Speeding – 30.7%
• Failure to yield right of way – 11.4%
• Reckless/careless/erratic driving – 7.4%
• Failure to obey traffic signs/signals – 6.6%
• Making improper turn – 4.1%

These are the top 5 specific causes of fatal auto accidents in which aggressive driving was a factor, and the text of the entire study can be found here. This list and these troubling numbers should provide anyone who understands these facts with some clear messages.

First, traffic laws are not in place to slow someone down, but rather to protect everyone on the road. Disobeying them only increases the chance that something terrible will occur. Secondly, aggressive drivers tend to be those who are emotional for one reason or another when they get behind the wheel. Driving is a science, which means that emotion should not be part of anyone’s approach to the road.

Finally, if you or someone you love has been injured or worse in an auto accident, contact the attorneys at Phillips & Webster today to schedule a free initial consultation.

When someone speeds through a light, they may technically be in line with traffic laws as long as they get through the signal before it turns red. However, most people will accelerate to a speed that’s above the speed limit to do so, which is clearly illegal. Additionally, the decision of whether or not one can make it through the light comes down to fractions of a second many times, and none of us are capable of those types of calculations in that amount of time.

The issues arise when someone is wrong on those calculations and speeds into an intersection as vehicles begin to move from opposite directions. Accidents are highly likely at that point, and any pedestrians who may assume that the traffic signal can be trusted will walk into that intersection. If the timing is not proper, people can get injured and killed.

Finally, taking this sort of risk is simply not worth the ‘benefit’ of saving 2 minutes of drive time. If you or someone you love has been injured as a result of someone running through a traffic signal, you need to contact the auto accident lawyers at Phillips & Webster today to schedule a free initial consultation.