NHTSA Begins $8 Million Ad Campaign to Combat Speeding
September 8, 2022
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced that it will run an ad campaign aimed at reducing speeding and speeding-related traffic accidents.
Ad Campaign Part of Federal Government Strategy to Reduce Traffic Deaths
The NHTSA’s three-week, $8 million ad campaign is part of the National Roadway Safety Strategy announced earlier this year by Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. The strategy’s goal is to reduce traffic deaths, which have risen nationwide over the past few years. The media campaign, whose tagline is “Speeding Wrecks Lives,” is aimed primarily at drivers aged 18 to 44 who are more likely to speed. The campaign includes radio, television, and digital ads. The NHTSA released a sample 30-second television commercial that showed cars driving too fast and crashing. The NHTSA also published a website that highlights the dangers of speeding.
NHTSA officials have stated that the increase in speed-related traffic accidents is likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During lockdowns in the first half of 2020, drivers took advantage of empty roads by speeding. However, these drivers failed to slow down once traffic returned to the roads over the second half of 2020.
The ad campaign was praised by Barbara Rooney, director of the California Office of Traffic Safety and chairwoman of the Governors Highway Safety Association, who noted that speeding has long been an area of emphasis for the association. Rooney noted, “despite the death and destruction that come with speeding, nearly all of us do it…far too many drivers consider the speed limit a suggestion or, even worse, a minimum. We must change that mindset…It’s time to change the social norm so that speeding is just as unacceptable as driving drunk or not wearing a seatbelt.”
Speeding Accident Statistics
According to the NHTSA, in 2020 speeding was a factor in 29 percent of fatal motor vehicle accidents, which accounted for 11,258 traffic deaths. This represented a 17 percent increase in speed-related traffic deaths over 2019. Other important speeding accident statistics include:
- 87 percent of speed-related accidents occurred on non-interstate roads
- 37 percent of fatal road work zone accidents involved a speeding motorist
- 37 percent of drivers who were involved in a speed-related fatal accident were also intoxicated at the time of the crash
What to Do If You Were Hit by a Speeding Driver
If you have been involved in an accident caused by a speeding driver, you may be entitled to compensation for:
- Medical expenses and costs of long-term personal or health care
- Loss of income due to missed work
- Loss of future earning potential or employment benefits
- Property damage, including repair costs for your vehicle or reimbursement of its value if it was totaled
- Physical pain and anguish
- Emotional trauma or distress
- Loss of quality of life because of physical disabilities or permanent scarring and disfigurement
Steps to take to preserve your rights to financial compensation include:
- Document the accident scene by taking photos and videos of important details, such as speed limit signs, traffic signals, or skid marks on the road
- See a doctor as soon as possible to get checked for any injuries you may have suffered in the accident
- Make sure to obtain a copy of the police crash report
- Keep copies of records of expenses and financial losses that you incur because of the accident
Contact a Pittsburgh Personal Injury Lawyer to Discuss Your Speeding Accident Case in Pennsylvania
Did you or a loved one sustain serious injuries due to a speeding car accident in Pennsylvania? Don’t let the medical bills pile up while you wait for the negligent party or their insurance company to do the right thing. Right now, you need an aggressive personal injury attorney on your side, fighting to get you the compensation you need, want, and deserve. The skilled attorneys at Goodrich & Geist, P.C. represent clients injured because of speeding accidents in Pittsburgh and the surrounding Western PA counties. Call (412) 766-1455 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free consultation about your case. We have an office conveniently located at 3634 California Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15212. Home visits can be arranged in certain situations.
The articles on this blog are for informative purposes only and are no substitute for legal advice or an attorney-client relationship. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact our law firm directly.
