As part of a concentrated effort to reduce the number of injuries and fatal accidents occurring on area roadways, police officers in Santa Monica plan to make the enforcement of motorcycle safety laws a top priority in the near future.
Intersections where motorcycle collisions frequently occur and areas with higher concentrations of motorcycle traffic will be patrolled by a larger than average number of police officers, according to a representative of the Santa Monica police department. In addition to an increased focus on spotting and citing motorcyclists in violation of traffic safety regulations, police officers will also be on the lookout for motorists participating in behavior that might lead to a collision with a motorcyclist. The leading causes of collisions involving motorcycles are traveling at an unsafe speed, risky behavior when turning or changing lanes, and operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, according to law enforcement officials.
Between the years of 1998 and 2008, California’s motorcycle collision deaths increased from 204 fatalities to 560 fatalities, an increase of 175 percent. Since then the number of fatal motorcycle collisions per year decreased to 394 in 2009 and 352 in 2010.
As a Los Angeles car accident attorney, I hope the roads can be made safer for motorists and motorcyclists alike. If you or someone you love has been injured in a motorcycle or automobile collision, please consider contacting a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer.
Lawmakers in Rhode Island are currently considering legislation that would ban drivers from holding a dog on their laps while operating a moving motor vehicle, in an effort to reduce distracted driving. A bill has been submitted to the House Judiciary Committee proposes authorizing law enforcement officials to issue citations to motorists driving while holding dogs on their laps. The offense would be punishable by $85 fine for the first occurrence, a $100 fine for the second occurrence and a $125 fine for each additional occurrence.
According to a survey conducted by AAA based on answers from 1,000 dog owners who had driven with their dogs in the previous year, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted letting a dog sit in their laps while they drove and 31 percent admitted to being distracted from their driving responsibilities by having dog in the car, no matter where the dog rode. Lawmakers in Tennessee are also considering a similar prohibition on driving while holding a dog in your lap. The California legislature voted to pass a similar ban in 2008, but the governor would not sign the bill into law.
As a Ventura personal injury lawyer, I am well aware of the harm that can result when drivers even momentarily take their eyes and minds away from the road ahead of them. If you or a loved one has been hurt in an accident linked to distracted driving, please consider hiring a Ventura car accident attorney.
Police and other law enforcement agencies in Ontario Canada, recently conducted a two day plan of action focused on increasing truck safety via an intensified enforcement of traffic law applied to commercial trucking vehicles. The joint-effort program includes thorough safety inspections of tow truck, big rigs, tractor trailers, and other large vehicles. The agencies and police officers will also be conducting backgroud checks on the drivers of these vehicles, as part of the effort called Project Spring Clean Up. Police and other law enforcement officials will be on the lookout for overly aggressive drivers, vehicles that are in unsafe mechanical condition, improperly secured cargo, or vehicles hauling illegal loads. The project’s main headquarters is located at Woodbine race track.
The Ontario Provincial Police, along with the Toronto Police Department and officers from Peel, Halton, York, Guelph, and Waterloo law enforcement agencies also play a part in the crackdown, along with officials from the transportation, environment, and revenue ministries and the bylaw office of the City of Toronto.
As a Fresno car accident lawyer, I sincerely hope that the effort conducted by Ontaro law enforcement officer is successful in making the roads safer for everyone, and possibly preventing unsafe drivers from crossing the border into the United States. If you or someone you love has been injured in an auto accident, please consider hiring a Fresno personal injury lawyer.
After receiving at least two complaints that the Chevrolet Cruze has caught fire while in motion, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration has launched an investigation of the vehicle, the bestselling passenger vehicle in the General Motor’s line. GM reports receiving at least 19 warranty claims related to the Cruze catching fire, and the automaker has launched its own investigation to determine the cause.
In one incident reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the driver pulled over after smelling smoke. Flames began to appear, and a warning light came on . The car was fully engulfed within a period of five minutes. The other complaint involved a driver waiting at an intersection when the woman in the car one lane over began to warn the driver that the Cruze had caught fire. This automobile, too, quickly became enveloped in flames.
Seven out of eight of the complaints received by the HTSA involve the vehicle catching fire while in motion. In one case, the driver has the car idling in park when someone warned him that car was producing flames.
As a licensed Riverside car accident lawyer, I hope this potentially dangerous situation is resolved before anyone is hurt. If you or someone you love has been negatively affected by a defective or malfunctioning automobile, please consider hiring a highly skilled San Bernardino car accident lawyer.
In honor of National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, the California Highway Patrol is offering some tips for remaining safe while driving on the streets and highways. First and foremost they’d like to remind motorists across the state that text messaging or talking on a handheld cellphone while driving an automobile is against the law in California, and the risks associated with this behavior outweigh any perceived benefits. In the United States distracted driving related car accidents are the primary cause for teen deaths. Novice drivers and drivers under the age of 18 should take special care to ensure the safety of themselves and others when they get behind the wheel.
Listening to your favorite music can make a drive more pleasant, but make your music selections before you hit the streets. Shuffling through albums or scanning the radio while the car is in motion takes your eyes off the road and is therefore very dangerous while the car is in motion.
Don’t perform other tasks such as eating and drinking, applying makeup, shaving, programming a GPS navigation device, etc. while the vehicle is in motion. Your first and only duty as a driver is to get to your destination without endangering the life of yourself or others.
As a Riverside car accident lawyer, I am well aware of the damage distracted drivers can cause. If you have been injured in an accident involving an inattentive driver, please consider contacting a Riverside personal injury lawyer.
Pennsylvania is doing its part to make local roads safer for bicyclists.
On April 2, a law will go into effect that is designed to improve the flow of traffic while keeping bike riders safe from harm. Residents of the state are being encouraged to learn more about the new rules being instituted so that safety will not be compromised.
Perhaps the biggest thing to note is a rule which states that vehicle drivers must give bicycle riders four feet of space when passing. This enables drivers to go past a center line to allow the necessary cushion, assuming that there isn’t traffic coming in the opposite direction. Drivers are also required to give bikes the right of way when a vehicle is turning left and a bike is going straight from the opposite direction.
For their part, bicyclists are required to make an effort not to impede traffic flow. Riders are advised to be at a safe distance from parked cars, and they may use any portion of the lane that allows them to avoid potential hazards that could cause an accident.
These rules are important to examine. As a car accident attorney in Bakersfield, I comprehend better than most the repercussions that a car on bike crash can have. We all need to be aware of how to best ensure safety of all parties, and it’s my wish as a Bakersfield personal injury lawyer that everyone across the country, not just in Pennsylvania, do whatever they can to maintain safety.
Undercover police officers in North Hollywood issued citations to many drivers and pedestrians recently as part of a sting operation targeting unsafe crosswalk behavior, following a fatal accident that claimed the life of an elderly pedestrian.
The police stopped 60 people, giving warnings to 24 pedestrians and motorists and ticketing 36 others for jaywalking or failing to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk. Plainclothes police officers posed as pedestrians as part of the undercover operation, and drivers who didn’t stop for them were issued traffic citations. The police ticketed fourteen pedestrians for crossing the street illegally.
Twenty-seven of the 56 fatal auto accidents that took place in San Fernando Valley involved pedestrians, and an increasing number of elderly pedestrians are killed in collisions every year. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the number of pedestrians killed in traffic each year continues to increase, even as the number of overall deaths decreases. Five pedestrians have been killed in traffic accidents in San Fernando Valley so far this year.
Police conducted sting operations at the intersections of Lankershim Boulevard and Campo de Cahuenga and Ventura Boulevard and Arch Drive.
As a Los Angeles car accident lawyer, I want our streets to be safer for motorists and pedestrians alike, but if you or someone you love has been injured in an auto accident, please consider contacting a Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney.
The city of Nashville has introduced a new safety awareness program designed to create safer roads for bikers and pedestrians. Titled “Moving in Harmony,” the initiative will use billboards, safety programs and other grassroots measures to inform the public about the increased number of bike lanes and bicyclists on the road in an effort to encourage motorists to share the road with bike riders. The program will also include efforts to improve pedestrian safety. In the past decade, Nashville has added 200 miles of sidewalks and 133 miles of bike lanes, but the city fears motorists are unaware of the laws regulating shared routes and bike lanes. For example a car should never travel inside of a bike lane as a ways to circumventing traffic.
The Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, appointed by the city’s mayor, received funding for the “Moving in Harmony” campaign through a Metro Public Health Department grant provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The committee hopes to have the initiative in full operation by May.
As an experienced Los Angeles car accident lawyer I’m always hopeful that our roads will become safer for everyone, pedestrians, bikers, and motorists, as we move into the future, but if you or someone you love has been injured in a car accident please consider discussing the circumstances of your case with a highly qualified Riverside car accident attorney.
The Michigan state senate recently passed a bill that would prohibit new drivers from using cellphones while behind the wheel of a moving automobile. If passed, the bill – labeled “Kelsey’s Law” after a 17 year old girl who was killed in a collision while talking on her cellphone – would ban non-emergency cellphone use for drivers with level one or two graduated licenses.
Some senators opposed the bill, saying the perils of using a handheld device while operating a motor vehicle should be explained by parents or driver’s education instructors rather than being legislated, while others argued that people of all ages should be prohibited from using cellphones while driving, not just teenagers.
Laws of a similar nature have already been passed in thirty other states. Michigan’s version of the law would allow teenage drivers to use cellphones in the event of an emergency such as reporting an auto collision or crime or seeking help for a medical situation. Hands-free navigation systems such as On Star would not be prohibited. After passing in the senate on a 28-120 vote, the bill will now be considered by the state’s house of representatives.
As a San Bernardino personal injury lawyer, I fully realize the damage that can be done by drivers distracted from their duties behind the wheel of an automobile. If you or someone you care about has been injured in an accident involving a distracted driver, I urge you to consider consulting with a San Bernardino car accident attorney.
Slip and fall cases can be expensive to the companies being sued, but they can be even more so when the offending company is found to have tampered with crucial evidence.
A man from Douglasville, Georgia, has won a $2.3 million lawsuit against the Kroger Co. grocery chain. The plaintiff had slipped on crushed fruit in the deli area of a Kroger store and fell onto his back. As a result, his lawyer said that the man suffered a spinal injury, requiring multiple surgeries totaling $135,000 and losing his ability to work.
What especially got Kroger into hot water was their apparent destruction of crucial video evidence of the slip in question. Kroger lawyers claimed that tapes are only saved for 17 days and the tapes from that day had been erased. They also provided sample images to prove that the camera did not even point in the direction of the fall.
However, a demonstration of the cameras proved that the camera was actually centered on the spot where the fall took place. The judge found that Kroger had destroyed the critical video evidence, and a jury came back with the $2.3 million verdict.
As a personal injury lawyer in Riverside, I’ve dealt with a number of slip-and-fall cases. Being able to provide the proper evidence is all-important in such cases. If you’re ever involved in an unfortunate accident, keep track of everything that happens, and a Riverside personal injury lawyer like myself will hopefully be able to help.
