More Deadly Fort Lauderdale Car Accidents Happen on Saturday Nights

Fort Lauderdale car accident lawyer Joseph Lipsky recently read a study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration which revealed that the most dangerous day to be on the road, that is the day that a deadly car accident is most likely to occur, is Saturday. Those of us who regularly drive I-95 or the Florida Turnpike on weekends know too well how careless many driver are, particularly later in the day.

The study which was commissioned due to the alarming increase in the number of deadly car accidents across America. The results were surprising because after a number of years of steady declines, car accidents resulting in wrongful deaths are again on the rise. The study analyzed data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System from 2016, which monitored the number of car accident deaths happened across Florida, including Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Key West, by day and time.

The study revealed that of the nearly 40,000 car accident deaths in 2016, almost 7000 happened on a Saturday. That means, Saturday saw a more than fifty percent greater number of roadway accident deaths that those which occurred on the safest day of the week, Tuesday.  The data also revealed that that Friday’s and Sunday’s were in a near draw as the second most deadly driving day.

The data proved that the late afternoon drive, when most people are leaving work, was more deadly than the morning commute to work, with the most deadly time for drivers between 4 and 7 p.m. It is hard to imagine, but the afternoon drive had a nearly 90% higher number of car accident deaths when compared to the morning drive to work. Not surprisingly, the period from 7 to 10 p.m. was the second deadliest with over 6,000 car accident deaths.

One of the most prevalent factors in wrongful death car accidents which happen in the afternoon and evening was, drunken or impaired driving. Drunk driving played a role in nearly 11,000 car accident deaths in 2016, which was almost 1/3^rd of all car accident related deaths in 2016. The number of alcohol related deaths, almost 30 per day, is staggering considering the aggressive efforts by law enforcement with check-points and on-going education by groups such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving, whose goal remains to stop drunk and impaired driving.

The number of drunk drivers dovetails with the number of evening deadly car accidents, with nearly 4 times the number of impaired drivers on the road in the evening compared to the day. The months in which drunk drivers are involved in deadly car accidents varies as the months of July, May and October have about the same number of fatal crashes.

The next most common factor involved in deadly Florida car accidents remains driver speed. According to the study, speeding was a factor in more than 10,000 people dying in car accidents in 2016. That staggering number accounts for more than twenty-five percent of a deadly car accidents. Needless to say, speeding and other aggressive driving greatly raises the chances of a driver losing control of a vehicle and having a crash which leads to a loss of life.

As a Plantation personal injury lawyer, Joseph Lipsky can only hope his fellow motorists remember that a moment of carelessness behind the wheel can have life-altering complications for others. We can only hope that due to the rapid growth of ride share companies like Uber and Lyft that drivers will think before they get behind the wheel after having any drinks.