Chicago Car Accident Lawyers Blog

A 2-vehicle Chicago car accident on Monday morning sent 7 people to local hospitals, four in critical condition, WGNTV reported.

The accident happened shortly after 4 a.m. at the intersection of Irving Park and Western Avenue, according to the Chicago Fire Department.

A Lexus T-boned an Audi in the middle of the intersection, sending the driver of the Lexus through the windshield. Two others involved in the accident had to be extricated from their vehicles by rescue personnel.

A fun report took serious aim at a deadly habit of distracted driving recently, when MSN reported the 10 worst foods to eat while driving. Coffee during morning commutes topped the list of food or beverages most likely to contribute to a car accident.

The Chicago car accident lawyers at Abels & Annes have closely followed the distracted driving issue both here and on our sister site, Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer blog, which recently reported on a new government agency FocusDriven, which has been formed to combat distracted driving accidents nationwide.

An estimated 80% of crashes and 65% of near-crashes involve some form of driver distraction within three seconds before the crash, according to a landmark study released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute.

“Most car accidents are caused by drivers not paying attention,” says Eric Bolton, an NHTSA spokesman.

Distracted driving means anything that takes your eyes, hands or mind away off the road. Eating while driving is one of the most common and distracting habits on the nation’s roads, according to government statistics.

In addition to eating and drinking behind the wheel, other common distractions include cell phones and text messaging; adjusting the stereo; children, pets and objects moving around inside the vehicle; smoking; dressing, putting on makeup shaving and reading.

Distracted drivers are most likely to be involved in rear-end collisions in which the vehicle in front of them is stopped. A report based on insurance-claims history found drivers had the most problems eating during morning commutes — many of those motorists were involved in a traffic accident as they tried to clean up spills while driving.

The top 10 food offenders in a car are:

1. Coffee
2. Hot soup: Many people drink it like coffee and run the same risks
3. Tacos
4. Chili
5. Hamburgers
6. Barbecued food
7. Fried chicken
8. Jelly- or cream-filled doughnuts
9. Soft drinks
10. Chocolate

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More than a dozen local police chiefs signed an endorsement of red light cameras, which was published over the weekend in the Chicago Tribune.

Supporters of the cameras, which photograph red-light violations and mail tickets to the vehicle’s owner, contend they are a valuable tool in reducing Chicago car accidents. As the Chicago injury lawyers at Abels & Annes reported last month, 1 in every 7 fatal car accidents occurs at an intersection, accounting for 7,772 of the 37,261 nationwide traffic fatalities in 2008.

But, as reported reported last month on our Chicago Car Accident Lawyers blog, a vocal minority has become active in protesting the cameras as nothing more than a cash cow for local governments. Detractors also contend the cameras can lead to rear-end collisions and other accidents as motorists slam on their brakes to avoid getting a ticket in the mail.

As of Monday, it is illegal to use a hand-held cell phone while driving in Evanston.

The Chicago Breaking News Center reported that Evanston Police will be warning motorists of the new ordinance by conducting educational enforcement actions next week.

Evanston Now reports that this let-you-off-with-a-warning period will last through next week but will not apply to drivers involved in reckless or negligent behavior or those involved in traffic accidents.

A total of 33,963 people died in traffic accidents nationwide during 2009 — the fewest traffic deaths since 1954, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

As previously reported on our Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer blog, the number of fatal Illinois traffic accidents and Chicago car accidents also declined to the lowest level in almost a century of reporting, from 1,043 deaths in 2008 to 928 deaths in 2009.

Many officials believe the downward trend in fatal car accidents can be explained by the poor economy and expect congestion and accidents to increase as the economy improves, according to a report we wrote about earlier this month here at Chicago Car Accident Lawyers blog.

The U.S. Department of Transportation reports that the total number of fatal traffic accidents in 2009 was the lowest recorded since 1954 — the number of fatal traffic accidents have now declined for the 15th straight quarter.

Preliminary estimates suggest the fatality rate, which records the number of fatal traffic accidents per vehicle mile traveled, may have reached the lowest level ever recorded.

“This is exciting news, but there are still far too many people dying in traffic accidents,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “Drivers need to keep their hands on the steering wheel and their focus on the road in order to stay safe.”

The 33,963 traffic fatalities recorded last year represent an 8.9 percent drop compared to the 37,261 deaths reported in 2008.

“This continuing decline in highway deaths is encouraging, but our work is far from over,” said National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator David Strickland. “We want to see those numbers drop further. We will not stop as long as there are still lives lost on our nation’s highways.”

The federal government also cites as reason for the decrease several nationwide campaigns to encourage responsible driving, including Click It or Ticket and Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest.

The federal government will release comprehensive statistics later this summer.

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AT&T, the nation’s second-largest cell-phone provider, has launched an aggressive nationwide campaign against texting while driving.

As we reported in December on our Chicago Car Accident Lawyers blog, Chicago is the birthplace of the cell phone; Ameritech debuted the “car phone” at Soldier Field in 1983.

But as the dangerous mix of cell phones and driving became apparent — and particularly the dangers of driving and text messaging — the cell phone industry has moved away from a marketing message aimed at drivers. Meanwhile, the federal government is pushing a nationwide ban on driving and text messaging and Illinois became one of the first states to ban text messaging while behind the wheel.

The move this week by AT&T is the largest corporate response yet to the growing safety crisis of distracted driving.

“Stop what you’re doing. Take out your wireless device. Read out loud the last text message you received,” AT&T’s campaign begins. “Would reading or responding to that text message while driving be worth causing a serious accident? When you look at it that way, there’s no text that couldn’t wait.”

The national campaign will feature true stories of the text messages that were sent or received before someone was seriously injured or killed in a traffic accident caused by distracted driving.

One message begins with a text “where u at?” and a mother saying “This is the text my daughter was reading when she drove into oncoming traffic.”

The nationwide ad campaign also also includes the message “No text is worth dying over” and the campaign’s slogan: “Txtng & Drivng … It Can Wait.”

The campaign will be rolled out in the next month and include print, radio, TV and online advertising, as well as in-store signs and messages inserted into bills.

The company has also launched a website, www.att.com/txtngcanwait, with information aimed at parents, teachers, and young people, who are most likely to be involved in an accident while text messaging, according to state and federal statistics.

“While our campaign is important for all drivers, we’re particularly focused on youth,” AT&T said in announcing the campaign.

Since announcing an initiative aimed at increasing awareness of the dangers of text messaging in September 2009, AT&T has prohibited its 280,000 employees from texting and driving, incorporated a safety message on the plastic sheets that protect most new handset cellphone screens and is incorporating the message into the company’s catalogs and others sales products, marketing and promotional materials.
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