In 2017, over 6,452,000 drivers throughout West Virginia and across the United States were involved in motor vehicle accidents. The data, which comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, also details which cities in the country are the best and worst for car accidents.
Some of the driving statistics for the cities can be attributed to the city layout. Western states with less populated cities and towns have the least amount of accidents. In Brownsville, Texas, for example, drivers go an average of 15 years between car crashes. Older, densely populated cities on the east coast, where drivers must contend with ancient infrastructure, have a higher rate of traffic accidents. This is evident in Baltimore, which is the worst city for car accidents in the country.
However, six of the top 15 worst cities for car accidents, are in California, which has newer infrastructure than many of the other places on the list. In order to decrease the number of accidents that occur each year, analysts recommend that drivers get plenty of sleep before hitting the road, use hands-free technology devices while behind the wheel and never drink or do drugs before driving. New developing technologies, such as lane departure warning signals, adaptive headlights and forward-collision systems, may soon help decrease the number of accidents that occur in these cities each year.
Those who live in a city where they have a greater likelihood of getting into a traffic accident must take precautions and practice good defensive driving in order to avoid collisions. When a car accident does occur, it can cause injuries that may result in costly medical bills and lost wages. A driver who behaved negligently and caused an accident to occur may be responsible for damages. A lawyer could file a civil claim on behalf of the injured plaintiff in order to collect medical and compensatory damages to pay for these bills.