Wed Jul 1, 10:45 am ET
To: TRANSPORTATION EDITORS
New Study Shows More Forgiving Roads Would Save Lives and Cut Costs; Health Experts & Transportation Leaders Urge Congressional Action
WASHINGTON,
July 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- More than half of U.S. highway
fatalities are related to deficient roadway conditions - a
substantially more lethal factor than drunk driving, speeding or
non-use of safety belts - according to a landmark study released today.
Ten roadway-related crashes occur every minute (5.3 million a year) and
also contribute to 38 percent of non-fatal injuries, the report found.
In
revealing that deficiencies in the roadway environment contributed to
more than 22,000 fatalities and cost the nation more than $217 billion
annually, the Pacific Institute
for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) concluded that making the roadway
environment more protective and forgiving is essential to reducing
highway fatalities and costs.
"If we put as much focus on improving road safety conditions
as we do in urging people not to drink and drive, we'd save thousands
of lives and billions of dollars every year," principal study author
Dr. Ted Miller said. Miller, an internationally-recognized safety
economist with PIRE added, "Safer drivers and safer cars remain vitally
important, but safer roadways are critical to saving lives, preventing
injuries and reducing costs."
Titled "On a Crash Course: The Dangers and Health Costs of Deficient Roadways,"
the study found the $217 billion cost of deficient roadway conditions
dwarfs the costs of other safety factors, including: $130 billion for
alcohol, $97 billion for speeding, or $60 billion for failing to wear a
safety belt. Indeed, the $217 billion figure is more than
three-and-one-half times the amount of money government at all levels
is investing annually in roadway capital improvements - $59 billion,
according to the Federal Highway Administration.
The
report concluded that roadway related crashes impose $20 billion in
medical costs; $46 billion in productivity costs; $52 billion in
property damage and other resource costs; and $99 billion in quality of
life costs which measure the value of pain, suffering, and loss of
enjoyment of life by those injured or killed in crashes and their
families. The report also found that crashes linked to road conditions
cost American businesses an estimated $22 billion at a time when many
firms are struggling. According to the report, crashes linked to road
conditions cost taxpayers over $12 billion every year.
"Recent
concerns about swine flu pale in comparison to the number of crash
victims I treat," said Dr. Jared Goldberg, an emergency room physician
in Alexandria, VA. "In medical terms, highway fatalities and injuries
have reached epidemic proportions, and efforts to prevent further
spread of this plague are essential. In the absence of a true vaccine
to defend ourselves, fixing dangerous roads would help prevent traffic
crashes from occurring in the first place."
On a Crash Course
identifies ways transportation officials can improve road conditions to
save lives and reduce injuries. For example, immediate solutions for
problem spots include: replacing non-forgiving poles with breakaway
poles, using brighter and more durable pavement markings, adding rumble
strips to shoulders, mounting more guardrails or safety barriers,
and installing better signs with easier-to-read legends. The report
also suggested more significant road improvements, including: adding or
widening shoulders, improving roadway alignment, replacing or widening
narrow bridges, reducing pavement edges and abrupt drop offs, and
clearing more space adjacent to roadways.
"Although
behavioral factors are involved in most crashes, avoiding those crashes
through driver improvement requires reaching millions of individuals
and getting them to sustain best safety practices," continued Miller.
"It is far more practical to make the roadway environment more
forgiving and protective."
The report also analyzed crash costs on a state-by-state basis. The 10 states with the:
-- Highest total cost from crashes involving deficient road
conditions are (alphabetically): Alabama, California, Florida,
Georgia, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania,
Tennessee and Texas.
-- Highest road-related crash costs per million vehicle miles of
travel are: Alabama, Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and West
Virginia.
-- Highest road-related crash costs per mile of road are:
California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii,
Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and South
Carolina.
PIRE
is a leading independent transportation safety research organization.
It has conducted research for a range of organizations, including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, National Safety Council and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). Drawing upon the most recent available data from the U.S. Department of Transportation, PIRE employed analytic modeling methods to evaluate the causes and costs of U.S. motor vehicle crashes in preparing On a Crash Course.
PIRE conducted the study on behalf of the Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC), which hosts the full report, complete state-by-state data and other research findings at www.transportationconstructioncoalition.org.
TCC members are calling on Congress to provide significant, dedicated
funding for roadway safety improvements and to develop programs that
encourage states to invest even more. The federal law that governs
transportation funding will expire this fall, and congressional
committees are now in the process of drafting successor legislation.
About the Authors
Ted R. Miller, Ph.D., Regional Science (economics); M. City Planning and M.S., Operations Research, Principal Research Scientist
Dr. Miller is an internationally recognized safety economist, who has
led more than 150 studies and authored more than 200 scholarly papers.
He is a leading expert on injury incidence, costs and consequences, as
well as substance abuse costs. His cost estimates are used by the U.S. Department of Transportation, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Justice Department and several foreign governments. He has estimated benefit-cost ratios for more than 125 health and safety measures. He is a Fellow with the Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine and has received several national awards for his work.
Eduard Zaloshnja, Ph.D., Applied Economics
Research Scientist
Dr. Zaloshnja has a background in applied economics and econometrics, specializing in safety/substance abuse issues.
At PIRE, he has estimated U.S. highway crash and bus and truck crash
costs, as well as the costs of crashes to employers and the frequency
and costs of traumatic brain injuries.
He also has conducted effectiveness and benefit-cost analyses of
diverse crash safety countermeasures including safety belts, child
safety seats, booster seats,
red light cameras, cattle guards, and streetlights. Currently, Dr.
Zaloshnja is investigating how often people become Medicaid recipients
in order to pay their medical bills following catastrophic injuries.
About PIRE
The Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) is a non-profit public health research
organization. For more than 30 years, PIRE has studied transportation
safety, doing groundbreaking work on issues related to driver behavior,
including studies of safety belt use, driver distraction, hazard
perception, aggressive driving, cell phone use, and fatigue. PIRE has
been an international leader and made seminal contributions in research
to understand and prevent impaired driving and reduce harm consequent
to it. PIRE has conducted transportation safety research for, among
others, the Federal Highway Administration, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, National Safety Council, and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). More at www.pire.org.
About TCC
The Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) includes 28 national
groups - representing contractors, engineers, manufacturers, suppliers
and labor unions - with a collective interest in federal transportation
policy and funding. More at www.transportationconstructioncoalition.org.
SOURCE Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE)
Posted on
Friday, July 3, 2009
by Crystal Drwenski