Look First: Why Failure to Yield Accidents are Becoming More Common
Statistics vary as to the number of left-turn collisions in Chicago. Most estimates place the proportion at between 30 and 50 percent of all the car accidents in the area. Different people have different ideas as to what constitutes a “left turn crash.” Some surveys only count the left-turn wrecks that occur at traffic controlled intersections (stoplight or stop sign). Other surveys include any kind of left-turn crash, such as a vehicle turning into a private driveway.
photo/ Floris via pixabay
Any way they are counted, left turn crashes usually cause serious injuries. Most people suddenly accelerate during these maneuvers so they can shoot through a gap in traffic. Speed multiplies the force in a collision between two objects, and that includes two vehicles. Read more online here to learn more about these accidents and the injuries they cause.
Poor Visibility
One reason for the increasing number of left-turn crashes is that driver visibility may be more limited than ever before. As recently as the 1990s, most people drove passenger cars. Today, more people drive large SUVs and pickup trucks. Most motorists have a hard time seeing around land barges like these, even in daylight and during clear weather.
Conditions like poor visibility are never an excuse for negligent driving. In fact, the opposite is true. If the tortfeasor (negligent driver) could not see very well, perhaps due to the glaring sun or a large diesel pickup truck, the driver has a duty to slow down even more and look even harder. That’s especially true if the tortfeasor was a taxi driver, Uber driver, or other commercial operator.
Motorcycle riders are especially vulnerable to visibility-related collisions. Most riders who have gone down heard the tortfeasor says something like “I couldn’t help crashing into you because you came out of nowhere.” Usually, that does not mean the motorcyclist was driving recklessly. It usually means the tortfeasor simply was not looking.
Distracted Driving
Compounding this situation, many people drive with only one eye on the road, due to the increase in distracted driving. The vast majority of people agree that it is extremely dangerous to text and drive. Yet most drivers admit that they at least occasionally text while they operate their vehicles. Most drivers travel roughly the length of a football field while they send or review just one text message. So, in tight left-turn situations, it is little wonder that there are so many crashes.
Distracted driving takes many forms. Hand-held cell phones get most of the adverse publicity. These gadgets combine all three forms of distracted driving, which are:
- Visual (taking one’s eye off the road),
- Manual (taking one’s hand off the wheel), and
- Cognitive (taking one’s mind off driving).
Most vehicle manufacturers now include hands-free cell phones in their vehicles. Aftermarket add-ons are quite popular as well. The problem is that these devices may be more dangerous than the hand-held variety. Hands-free phones are visually and cognitively distracting. Plus, they give drivers a false sense of security.
If you or a loved one was hurt or killed in a left turn crash, the other driver is almost always responsible. So, contact a lawyer today for maximum compensation.
Author: Laura Brown
