This is a great segment on older drivers from All Things Considered. Currently, there are 27.5 million older drivers in the United States. A University of Florida study predicts by 2025, a quarter of all US drivers will be age 65 or older. Once older drivers reach 75, they are among the most likely age group to be involved in a fatal crash. Only teen drivers have a higher likelihood of being involved in fatal crashes. This article and broadcast focus on creative ideas to keep older drivers safely on the road.
Seat belts and sober drivers: two things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving weekend
Travel is expected to be heavy this Thanksgiving holiday weekend as people head off to feast with families and friends. But there’s one
sure recipe that can turn a joyful holiday into a tragedy: failure to buckle up and driving drunk.
Over the past five years, Michigan has averaged 14 traffic deaths during the Thanksgiving holiday period. During the 2008 Thanksgiving weekend, 13 people died in traffic crashes in Michigan. Ten of those fatalities involved alcohol and eight of those who died were not buckled up.
“Seat belts are the single most important safety device in you vehicle and they have saved countless lives and prevented untold numbers of injuries over the years,” said Michael L. Prince, Office of Highway Safety Planning director. “Be safe this Thanksgiving by making sure everyone in the vehicle is buckled up before you start your trip.”
Michigan’s seat belt use rate has steadily climbed over the past decade and currently stands at a record-high 97.9 percent, the highest in the nation. But last year, of the 841 vehicle occupants who died in traffic crashes, 244 were not restrained.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, seat belt use is the best defense in a crash. Research has shown that when lap and shoulder belts are used properly, the risk of fatal injury to front-seat passenger car occupants is reduced by 45 percent, and the risk of moderate to serious injury is reduced by 50 percent.
Motorists are also reminded to designate a sober driver this holiday season. About 35 percent of all traffic fatalities in Michigan involve alcohol and/or drugs.
A first-time drunk driving conviction carries heavy penalties including up to 93 days in jail, up to a $500 fine, up to 360 hours of community service, six points on a driver’s license and up to 180 days’ license suspension.
In addition, convicted drunk drivers will be subject to a $1,000 fee for two consecutive years, for a total of $2,000 in additional costs. Anyone who refuses a breath test the first time is given an automatic one-year driver’s license suspension.
The Office of Highway Safety Planning has been asked to update an April 2004 analysis of the estimated effects of repealing Michigan’s mandatory helmet law. That analysis estimated a 26% increase in motorcyclist fatalities, a 17% increase in incapacitating injuries, and a 20% increase in economic costs in the event of a repeal. Two things have changed since then:
Michigan has seen an increase in the number of motorcyclists, motorcycle crashes, and motorcycle fatalities, thereby increasing the number of motorcyclists potentially affected by a repeal; Louisiana, the state seeing the highest increase in post-repeal motorcyclist deaths, re-instituted its mandatory helmet law.
A higher baseline for fatalities and crashes means that applying the same percentage increase will produce a larger impact. The expected effects of a repeal are now larger than they were in 2004. From 2005-2006, Michigan motorcyclists annually suffered 116 fatalities, 746 incapacitating injuries, 2,057 other injuries, at a total economic cost of $628 million. If Michigan’s mandatory motorcycle helmet law were to be repealed, the state should expect to see an annual increase of at least 30 fatalities, 127 incapacitating injuries, and $129 million in economic costs. This estimate is based solely on decreased helmet use and does not include any increases in motorcycle use. If motorcyclists are expected to ride more miles without helmets or new motorcyclists are expected to start riding, these estimates should be multiplied to include that increase. Notably, new motorcyclists will have more crashes per mile or hour of riding, and therefore a disproportionate impact on crash totals, even if they have a (secondary) requirement to wear helmets.
The authoritative report on motorcycle helmet effectiveness remains Motorcycle Helmet Effectiveness Revisited, which estimates that motorcycle helmets are 37% effective at preventing motorcycle fatalities. This comes from actual crash outcomes involving motorcyclists wearing helmets or not, not on theoretical or design-based analysis.
Researchers at the University of Michigan trauma center found that hospitalized unhelmeted motorcyclists had average care costs of $37,317 (20% higher than helmeted motorcyclists) and were 6% less likely to have insurance.