Intersections pose on of the most dangerous areas of any roadway because cross-traffic must be coordinated in an orderly fashion to prevent traffic collisions. When drivers are not focused on the roadway, tired or impaired by alcohol, they may fail to stop at stop signs, run red lights or disregard pedestrians in crosswalks. While most intersection accidents are caused by negligent drivers who disobey traffic laws or basic safe driving practices, the design or maintenance of an intersection may also contribute to a Missouri intersection accident.
At Hubbard & Kurtz, LLP, we work diligently to identify all negligent parties, conduct an investigation that may include use of an accident reconstruction expert and aggressively negotiate to obtain the financial recovery our clients’ are entitled to receive for medical expenses, pain and suffering, diminished earning capacity, vehicle damage, lost income, impaired enjoyment of life and other damages and financial loss.
The most common factor that contributes to intersection crashes in Missouri is unsafe driving practices by inattentive or careless drivers. These hazardous driving practices include:
- Failing to reduce one’s speed when approaching an intersection
- Dividing a motorist’s attention between driving and other tasks like using a cell phone to talk or text
- Trying to “beat” a stoplight before it turns red
- Running stop signs because a driver is distracted or intoxicated
- Unsafe left turns
- Non-compliance with yield signs
- Aggressive driving including disregarding right of way rules
While these are just a few of the types of driving behavior that may cause an intersection collisions in Missouri, these types of traffic violations pose an especially serious risk near street corners because car, truck, motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians must all cross paths. The inevitable risk presented by vehicles and pedestrians crossing paths at an intersection is reflected by the fact that 43 percent of all vehicle accidents occur in or near intersections. Although some presume that intersection crashes generally are low speed collisions that cause minimal injury, crashes where traffic intersects on cross-streets account for 21 percent of all traffic-related fatalities.
Drivers who run red lights at intersections because they are distracted, substance impaired or simply careless account for a significant portion of intersection collisions. A third of all people in the U.S. know someone who died or was injured in a collision where the negligent driver ran a red light. There are over 1.9 million intersection crashes annually, and almost 220,000 of these traffic accidents are caused by drivers who run red lights.
Although negligent drivers are the primary cause of intersection accidents, sometimes public entities will design an intersection or time traffic lights in a way that increases the risk. A public entity may also fail to dispatch police to an intersection where the lights are malfunctioning to direct traffic in a timely manner. In situations like these, the public entity also may share liability for a fatal Missouri intersection accident.
If you or someone you love is injured or a family member dies in a Missouri intersection accident, we urge you to contact us if you have questions. Our experienced Missouri intersection car accident attorneys at Hubbard & Kurtz, LLP work diligently to obtain financial compensation for our clients’ injuries so contact us toll free at (877) 535-1163 to see how we can help!