2014 Data Shows A Rise In Deaths On Texan Roadways

On behalf of Lovett Law Firm posted in Car Accidents on Thursday, September 17, 2015.

Living in Texas, you probably already know that your highways and roads are busy nearly all the time. You see plenty of big-rig trucks and small family vehicles, too. If you’ve been in an accident recently, then you probably have been wondering how often people have to go through situations like you’re in now. You may also want to know about this data to help build a solid case for compensation following your accident.

The Texas Department of Transportation reports statistics from each year to help others understand the state of traffic in Texas. In 2014, the agency reported 1.42 deaths per hundred million vehicle miles traveled. While that may not seem like a lot, the number of deaths have increased by 2.16 percent since 2013, showing that driving was actually riskier a year after relatively low reports of fatalities.

How many people get hurt each year? According to the data, 2014 saw 13,675 serious injury crashes. In those, 17,152 people were seriously injured. There were 581 people killed in head-on collisions and two crashes resulted in at least six deaths each in 2014.

Something to think about is that throughout all of 2014, there was not a single day that went by without a fatality on Texas roadways. Based on the data, you can see that a person was killed once every two hours and 29 minutes, and one reportable crash took place around every 66 seconds. That means that even with today’s laws and protections in place, there are still hundreds of people paying the price for dangerous driving, drunk driving and other issues resulting in collisions.

Source: Texas Department of Transportation, “Texas Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash Highlights Calendar Year 2014,” accessed Sep. 17, 2015