1.

The Traffic Crash Problem

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Driving is potentially the most dangerous activity that you can be involved in on a regular basis.

More Americans have been killed in traffic crashes than have been killed in all U.S. wars fought in over 200 years. Let that sink in
for a moment. Does that fact disturb you? It should. Everyone is touched by the traffic crash problem – either directly or indirectly.
Maybe you’ve been in a crash. Hopefully, it was just a fender-bender. Maybe you’ve been injured in a crash. If not, you surely know
someone who has suffered crash injuries – or perhaps you know someone who lost his or her life in a traffic collision.

Unless you are a soldier, or a police officer, or an electrician, or a jet engine mechanic, driving is undoubtedly
the most potentially dangerous activity you are involved in on a regular basis. Are you aware of that potential
danger, or are you in denial? Most drivers are in denial. They choose not to think of the danger. While it would be unwise to obsess
about the dangers inherent in driving, we still need to have a healthy respect for this inescapable reality: our lives are on the line
every time we drive. And not only is your life on the line, but the life of every other driver, pedestrian and cyclist is at risk as well.

Take this quick True/False quiz and see how well you understand the Traffic Crash Problem. Don’t worry about your score, this is
just to stimulate your thinking.

1. In 2003 almost 43,000 people died in crashes.

2. In 2003, 25% of those killed were not wearing safety belts.

3. Crashes cost society $7,300 per minute.

4. In rear-end crashes, drivers under 25 are more likely to do the striking.

5. 20% of all crash fatalities are DUI-related.

6. The economic cost of speed-related crashes is $40 billion per year.

7. States that raised the speed limit from 65 mph to 75 mph saw little or no increase in crash fatalities.

8. Drowsy drivers cause 50,000 crashes, 20,000 injuries and 800 fatalities per year.

9. Approximately 750 people a year are injured or killed in Road Rage incidents.

10. A crash occurs in the U.S. every 7 seconds.

 SOCIETAL AND PERSONAL LOSSES
FROM TRAFFIC CRASHES

Numbers don’t lie. To get a true picture of the damage done by negligent operators of motor vehicles, we need to examine
these statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: (1)

FOR THE U.S.

In the U.S. during 2003, the number of traffic crash fatalities decreased by 1% from the previous year for a total of 42,643. For the
last several years this number has remained relatively constant. Let’s put this number into perspective. Each day of the year, roughly
117 people are killed in traffic crashes… which means that 5 people are killed every hour… which in turn means that, on average, in
the U.S. , 1 person is killed every 12 minutes, every hour of every day, 365 days a year.

The number of fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) decreased nationwide by 2%. This simply means that despite
the fact that the amount of driving has gone up, the amount of danger has increased!

FOR FLORIDA :

In Florida during 2003, the number of traffic crash fatalities increased by 1% over the previous year for a total of 3,179. (Don’t
despair - we’re doing a lot better than the District of Columbia , where traffic crash fatalities increased by 43%!) Still, this number is
too high. Let’s break it down so it hits home: In Florida during 2003, roughly 9 people a day were killed in traffic crashes. Men,
women, children… people we knew and people we will now never get a chance to know.

The number of fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) decreased in Florida by 1% - under the national number.

Of the 2,105 passenger vehicle occupants killed in 2003 in Florida , 40% were not wearing safety belts. Of the 365 motorcyclists
killed in Florida during 2003, 61% were not wearing helmets.

3,179 PERSONS KILLED

IN FLORIDA FATAL CRASHES DURING 2003
TYPE %
DRIVERS 58
PASSENGERS 22.
6
PEDESTRIANS 15.
8
PEDALCYCLISTS 3.2
OTHER 0.4

4,432 VEHICLES INVOLVED

IN FLORIDA FATAL CRASHES DURING 2003
VEHICLE TYPE %
CARS 45.6
LIGHT TRUCKS 35.9
LARGE TRUCKS 7.7
MOTORCYCLES 8.6
OTHER 2.2

HOW WE COMPARE:

In the U.S. as a whole, there were 1.48 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled. In Florida , there were more: 1.71 fatalities
per 100 million VMT. We are, therefore, above the national average.
In the U.S. , the number of traffic fatalities decreased from the previous year by 1% while in Florida they increased 1%.

The bed of a pickup truck is a dangerous place to be. Of the 85 U.S. fatalities in pickup truck beds during 2003, 11 (13%) occurred in
Florida . We were second only to Texas (13 or 15%) in this unfortunate statistic.

The following statistics were derived from the Traffic Crash Statistics Report 2003 as compiled by the Florida DHSMV: (2)

While there was a decrease in the number of traffic crashes during 2003 (from 2002) the number of fatalities actually increased (by
1.1%)

There were 243,294 traffic crashes in Florida during 2003, an average of 667 each day, or 28 every hour.

Thankfully, in Florida during 2003 there was a 3.5% decrease in traffic injuries.

The majority of all Florida 2003 crashes (59.6%) occurred in business areas. But the majority of fatal crashes (60.3%) were in open
country or residential areas.

During 2003 in Florida , 509 pedestrians were killed, which amounted to 16% of all traffic fatalities

During 2003 in Florida , 95 bicyclists were killed, which amounted to 3% of all traffic fatalities.

During 2003 in Florida , 339 motorcyclists were killed, which amounted to 10.7% of all traffic fatalities.

What about the other 70.3% of all fatalities? As you would suspect, the vast majority of all traffic fatalities are drivers and occupants
of cars and light trucks.

SOME RECENT HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE:

Over the last 26 years, safety belts have prevented 135,000 fatalities and 3.8 million injuries. This saved society $585 billion in
medical care, lost productivity, and other injury related economic costs. During the same time period, nearly 315,000 additional
fatalities and 5.2 million serious injuries could have been prevented by safety belts if all occupants had used them. This represents an
economic loss of $913 billion in unnecessary expenses and lost productivity. (3)

Each critically injured survivor costs an average of $1.1 million. Medical costs and lost productivity accounted for 84 percent of the
cost for this most serious level of non-fatal injury.(4)

In rear-end crashes, drivers under 25 are more likely to be in the striking role than in the struck role. As drivers get older, they tend to
be in the striking role less often than in the struck role.(5)

The lifetime economic cost to society for each fatality is over $977,000. Over 80% of this amount is attributable to lost workplace
and household productivity. (6)

Midnight to 3 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays proved to be the deadliest 3-hour periods. (7)

On average, 14 school-age pedestrians are killed by school buses (or vehicles used as school buses) each year, and 6 are killed by
other vehicles involved in school bus-related crashes. (8)

More school-age pedestrians are killed in the afternoon than in the morning, with 41% of the fatalities occurring in crashes between
3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. (9)

Approximately 50% of property damage only crashes and 20% of all injury crashes are not reported to the police. (10)
 IMPACT OF DUI

The following statistics are from the NHTSA: (11)

FOR THE U.S.

In 2003, there were 17,013 alcohol-related fatalities on U.S. highways. This number, which has remained disturbingly constant
through recent years, represents a whopping 40% of all traffic fatalities.

The number 17,013 translates to one alcohol-related fatality every 31 minutes.

Traffic fatalities in 2003 fell by 2.9% from the previous year. Thankfully, the overall trend is one of reduction. For example, in 1993,
alcohol-related fatalities accounted for 45% of the total number of traffic fatalities.

Roughly 275,000 people were injured in the U.S. during 2003 in alcohol-involved crashes. This amounts to an average rate of 1
injured person every 2 minutes.

Of all crashes in which children 14 years old and younger were killed, 21% were alcohol-related crashes.

Alcohol isn’t deadly just for drivers and vehicle occupants. In 2003, more than one-third of all pedestrians 16 and older who were
killed in traffic crashes had a BAC of 0.08 or greater.

In almost half of all pedestrian fatalities (46%) during 2003, either the pedestrian or the driver of the vehicle that hit the pedestrian
had been drinking alcohol.

As you might imagine, with regard to alcohol-involvement, the most dangerous times and days of the week to drive are directly
related to the times when people are most likely to consume alcohol, namely evenings and weekends. Sixty-one percent (61 %) of all
fatal, alcohol-involved crashes occur at night. During the weekend, 53% of all fatal crashes were alcohol-involved.

While 2003 data is not yet available, in 2002, 1.5 million drivers were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or narcotics.
This is an arrest rate of 1 for every 130 U.S. licensed drivers.

Drivers between the age of 21 and 24 who were involved in fatal crashes during 2003 were the worst abusers of alcohol, in that 32%
of the drivers in this age group had BAC levels of 0.08 or higher.

Safety belts were worn by 25% of fatally injured drivers with a BAC of 0.08 or higher and 40% of fatally injured drivers with levels
between 0.1 and 0.7 BAC. In other words, the greater the driver’s impairment, the less likely that driver is to be wearing a safety belt.

FOR FLORIDA :

The following statistics were derived from the Traffic Crash Statistics Report 2003 as compiled by the Florida DHSMV: (12)

During 2003, Florida suffered a slight increase over last year in each basic category of alcohol-related crash statistics.

In Florida during 2003, 34.5% of all traffic fatalities and 9.4% of all traffic crashes were alcohol-related.

CAUSED BY ALCOHOL:
FATALITIES 1,096
 INJURIES 17,37
9

CRASHES 22,75
2

FATAL CRASHES 997

INJURY CRASHES 10,93

7

The worst offenders for alcohol-related crashes in Florida during 2003 were drivers between the ages of 20 and 30 years of age. This
group accounted for 31% of all alcohol-related traffic crashes and 33% of all alcohol-related traffic crashes in which there was a
fatality.

Ten percent of people injured in car crashes received their injuries in alcohol-related crashes. (13)

IMPACT OF OTHER
HAZARDOUS DRIVING BEHAVIORS

SPEEDING

A student in my class got caught for speeding. I asked the student why he was speeding. The person said, “A policeman was
behind me I thought he wanted me to drive faster.” Trust me on this one. The cop behind you does not want you to drive faster.

FOR THE U.S.

Speeding is a huge contributing factor in crashes. The economic cost of speeding-related crashes is estimated at $40.4 BILLION per
year. (14)

The following statistics are from the NHTSA: (15)

Let’s break this number down. $40 billion dollars per year is the equivalent of $76,865 per minute, or $1,281 per second. If
(magically) no one ever drove at an unsafe speed, and speed-related crashes would be eliminated, imagine the monetary benefit to
our society! Do you believe in magic?

In 2003, 39% of male drivers 15 to 20 years old involved in fatal crashes were speeding. Young males are the age/gender group with
the greatest propensity for speeding.

Speeding motorcyclists were involved in fatal crashes at about twice the rate for drivers of passenger cars or light trucks.

Three unsafe driving practices tend to combine time and time again to produce deadly consequences: (1) speeding, (2) alcohol and
(3) failure to wear seatbelts.

Nationwide in 2003, most speeding-related fatal crashes occurred on non-Interstate roads with a speed limit under 55 mph. Only 14%
of speeding related fatalities occurred on Interstate highways.

FOR FLORIDA :
 On Florida roads during 2003, 17% of all fatalities (539) were speed-related. The most dangerous location was a non-Interstate road
with a speed limit of 45 mph. The least likely location for a speed-related fatality was an Interstate highway with a speed limit of 55
mph.

Speeding was the cause of 13.5% of all fatal crashes during 2003. It was the cause of only 3.5% of all injury collisions and 2.9% of
all vehicle and/or property damage only collisions.(16)

DRIVER DISTRACTIONS

FOR THE U.S.

In a recent study of approximately 5000 police-reported crashes, only

48.6% of the drivers were identified as attentive at the time of their
crash. The remaining 51.4% of the drivers were compromised by
inattention due to distraction, fatigue or loss of concentration.(17)

Drivers under 20 years of age were the most likely to be involved in

distraction-related crashes, and they tended to be distracted mostly by
adjusting the radio, CD or cassette.(18)

A man is driving with his wife at his side and his mother-in-law in the backseat. The women don’t leave him alone.

His mother-in-law says, “You’re driving too fast!”

His wife says, “Stay more to the left.”

After ten mixed orders, the man turns to his wife and asks, “Who’s driving this car - you or your mother ?”

Drivers between 20-29 years of age were more distracted by their passengers.(19) Drivers over 65 were more distracted by outside
objects and events. (20)

A California Highway Patrol A recent study found that the leading factors causing distracted driving collisions were 1) cell phone
use, 2) attending to children and 3) eating. (21)

Driver distractions and inattentive driving play a part in one out of every four motor vehicle crashes. That’s more than 1.5 million
collisions a year – more than 4,300 crashes each day! (22)

A report by the NHTSA indicates that inattention causes 68% of rear-end crashes. Other kinds of crashes – backing up, lane changes
and merging – are usually caused by a driver not recognizing an obstacle or not paying attention.(23)

My friend took the phone out of his car the other day. It was too much trouble running out to answer it all the time!”

There are approximately 120 million cell phone subscribers in the U.S. and 60% of all cell-phone talk time nationwide is spent while
driving a motor vehicle.(24)

The risk of collision is 4 times greater when the driver is talking on a cell phone.(25)
Drivers on cell phones are slower to react to critical/unpredictable events than undistracted drivers and 2 times more likely to miss
critical/unpredictable events completely. (26)
The use of cell phones by drivers may result in approximately 2,600 deaths, 330,000 moderate to critical injuries, and 1.5
million instances of property damage in America per year. But because the data on cell phone use by motorists are still
limited, the range of uncertainty is wide. The estimate of fatalities ranges between 800 and 8,000, and the estimate of injuries
is between 100,000 and 1 million. (27)

I tell you, women drivers are a hazard to traffic. While driving to work this morning, I looked over to my left and there's this
woman in a Mustang doing 65 miles per hour with her face up next to her rear view mirror putting on her eyeliner! I looked
away for a couple seconds, and when I looked back, she's halfway over in my lane. Scared me so bad I dropped my electric shaver
in my coffee.

DROWSY DRIVERS

Every year, falling asleep while driving is responsible for at least 100,000 automobile crashes, 40,000 injuries, and 1550 fatalities.
(30)

About one-half of America ’s adult drivers – 51 percent or approximately 100 million people – are on the roads sleepy while they are
driving.(31)

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that approximately 100,000
police-reported crashes annually (about 1.5% of all crashes) involve drowsiness/fatigue as a principal factor.
(32)

A conservative estimate of fatalities related to drowsy drivers is 1,500 people killed annually or 4% of all traffic crash fatalities.(33)

At least 71,000 people are injured in fall-asleep crashes each year.(34)

Drowsy driving contributes to other dangerous behaviors: 42% of adults report they become stressed while driving drowsy and 32%
say they become impatient. Twelve percent of older adults admit they drive faster when they’re sleepy and 22% of younger adults
report they speed when they’re fatigued.(35)

Sleepy drivers are just as dangerous as impaired drivers. In a recent study comparing sleep-deprived drivers and alcohol-impaired
drivers, researchers found little difference in reaction time and driving performance between the two groups. The average reaction
time of the alcohol-impaired group was 294 milliseconds while the average for the sleep-deprived group was 300 milliseconds.(36)

AGGRESSIVE DRIVING

Approximately 6,800,000 crashes occur in the U.S. each year; a substantial number of these are caused by
aggressive driving.(37)

In a recent NHTSA survey, 30% of respondents said they felt their safety was threatened in the last month by aggressive drivers,
while 67% felt this threat during the last year.(38)

More than half surveyed by NHTSA admitted to driving aggressively on occasion.(39)

Of the drivers who admitted to frequently driving in an unsafe and illegal manner, 62% said they had NOT been stopped by a traffic
officer in the past year.(40)

An average of at least 1,500 men, women and children are injured or killed each year in the U.S. as a result of (road rage.)(41)

STATE OF FLORIDA
TRAFFIC CRASH STATISTICS

Here is a summary of the Florida crash statistics discussed earlier. If you avoided becoming one of these statistics, consider yourself
very fortunate.
 Traffic crashes 243,294
Drivers involved 362,024
Average crashes per day 667
Mileage Death Rate

(per 100 million Vehicle Miles) 1.7

Fatalities 3,179
Fatal crashes 2,880
Injuries 221,639
Injury crashes 138,891
Property damage only crashes 101,523
Alcohol-related fatalities 1,096
Alcohol-related injuries 17,379
Alcohol-related crashes 22,752
Alcohol-related fatal crashes 997
Alcohol-related injury crashes 10,937
Pedestrians killed 509
Pedestrians injured 7,449
Pedestrian crashes 7,980
Bicyclists killed 95
Bicyclists injured 4,991
Bicycle crashes 5,393
Motorcyclists killed 339
Motorcyclists injured 5,973
Motorcycle crashes 6,635

You’ve just read a lot of numbers. Statistics can numb the mind. So, what’s the bottom line? What do all those numbers mean? Well,
it all adds up to this: there is indeed a serious problem on our streets and highways.

The question every driver must ask is this:

“Am I part of the problem… or am I part of the solution?”

There is no middle ground. If you drive, you are either one or the other. You either make
the road a safer place, or you make it more dangerous. We all know the expression:
“Your car is as dangerous as a loaded weapon.” It’s so true. But did you ever stop and
wonder…. “Just what is my car loaded with?” The answer is
 Your car is loaded with you. Yes! You are the
“bullet!”

Your car is only as dangerous as you – the driver – allow it to be. So, what kind of driver are you? Do you drive distracted… or
defensively? Do you drive impaired… or sober? Do you drive recklessly… or safely and with consideration for others? You are “the
bullet,” indeed – but are you a driver of “high caliber”? Well, hopefully, after you complete this course, you will be!