What are different and effective ways we can make the road safer? This is a question drivers, construction workers and sign makers all ask themselves every day. The United States, while home to some of the most impressive highways and car brands, is also struggling under the weight of crashes, drunk driving and ongoing property damage linked to hazardous driving habits. This has lead many to seek out simple solutions to reduce the damage and loss caused by car crashes, from creating higher quality blank out signs to condemning distracted and drunk driving habits.
How Often Do People Drive?
The average driver spends around 20 hours every week driving and traveling more than 200 miles. Even for those that don’t drive frequently, driving safety is one of the most important issues in the United States. Ongoing awareness campaigns, be they televised or on the Internet, regularly circulate to better spread attention to common issues on the open road. One such frequent issue involves poorly made blank out signs. Be they solar powered variable message signs or lane control signs, these need to be fully functional at all times to avoid the risk of a driver going where they don’t need to go.
What Are Common Road Hazards?
The winter season frequently makes people step up and create safer habits to avoid the unpredictability that comes with ice, sleet, rain and snow. However, the road is unsafe no matter the season and requires a driver’s continuous vigilance and attention. Common environmental hazards include black ice, deer crossing, pot holes and unseen items with the potential to puncture tires. Human-based hazards include drunk driving, distracted driving and vehicle negligence. Blank out signs are designed to be as noticeable as possible no matter the time of day or weather to ensure everyone on the road knows how fast to go, where to turn and where to stop.
How Bad Are Car Crashes?
Car crashes are an epidemic that affect millions of people every single year. One in three crash deaths in the United States involved drunk driving, while another one in three involved some form of speeding. More than 32,000 people are killed, and another two million are injured, every year from motorcycle vehicle crashes alone. In New York, nearly 4,000 New Yorkers are severely injured on an annual basis in traffic accidents.
What Are Common Injuries?
Being in a car crash can result in minor to severe injuries. Some of the most common injuries resulting from a car crash are broken bones, sprains, bruises, cuts, burns and temporary loss of consciousness. The more severe long-term injuries include whiplash, disability, extensive loss of consciousness, brain damage, memory loss and loss of limb. Blank out lights and dynamic message signs are a must during severe weather patterns, as well, to ensure drivers are not confused when it’s raining, dark or snowing.
How Can Crashes Be Prevented?
Thankfully, dangerous driving results can be prevented the vast majority of the time. At any given daylight moment across the country around 660,000 drivers are either using cell phones or attempting to manipulate electronic devices, such as the radio, while driving. This number has remained steady since 2010, making it about as hazardous as drunk driving. Safe habits such as calling a designated driver or taxi when drunk, resisting the urge to text or eat food while driving and regularly maintaining one’s vehicle go a long way in creating a safer road for all.
