The efforts of advocacy groups and law enforcement agencies seem to be paying off — at least here in Pennsylvania. Data from PennDOT indicates that deaths due to drunk driving accidents are down in the state. Does this mean that personal injury and wrongful death claims decline as well? Perhaps not, but at least more lives are being saved than ever before.
Even though sources do attribute the decline in alcohol-related fatalities to the dissemination of information and education regarding drunk driving, other factors also play a significant role. For instance, new technologies in vehicles, such as air bags, also contribute to the drop in deaths. Another significant factor involves new criminal penalties being implemented by jurisdictions everywhere, including the use of ignition interlock devices that make it impossible to start a vehicle if a a driver has alcohol on his or her breath.
The numbers may be down, but one segment of the population continues to drink and drive, and education may help reduce those numbers. Teenagers continue to consume alcohol to excess even in the midst of the nation’s opioid crisis. Many of those teens then get behind the wheel of cars. When intoxication is coupled with inexperience, this situation creates a disaster waiting to happen.
Teens are not the only ones still drinking and driving either. People still die and suffer serious injuries due to drunk driving accidents here in Pennsylvania and across the country. Anyone who suffered injuries in this type of crash may benefit from obtaining information regarding his or her rights and legal options from a personal injury attorney.
Source: triblive.com, “Alcohol-related crash fatalities in Pennsylvania down significantly“, Paul Peirce, Feb. 19, 2018
