The Arkansas State Police Highway Safety Office is in charge of gathering and reporting information regarding vehicle and motorcycle accidents. The information is gathered through a variety of mechanisms, such as alcohol related, weather related, road conditions and time of day.
The Highway Safety Office is a department of the Arkansas State Police. It administers federal highway funds from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and oversees highway safety program efforts throughout the State. The Highway Safety Administration works with entities of both state and local governments in order to coordinate highway safety and efficiency plans. Fayetteville AR personal injury lawyer Ken Kieklak explains.
Highway Safety Plans
Each year, the highway safety office develops a highway safety plan in order to identify traffic related problems and recommend solutions. These identifiers are used to reduce traffic related injuries (both to drivers and pedestrians), car accidents, and fatalities. Take a look at the Arkansas Highway Safety Office 2012 Highway Safety Plan.
The Arkansas Highway Safety Administration collects data together with other pertinent research from car accident reports in order to bring Arkansas residents the most up to date information on highway and road safety.
The highway safety administration has endorsed various bills that have been passed by the legislature and signed into law. Act 37 is an act to improve the safety of highways and roads by prohibiting cellular device use in school zones and highway work zones. Act 194 was passed by the 88th General Assembly, and its main purpose is to amend the statutes involving suspension or revocation of an individual’s driver’s license. The Act was also passed to enforce penalties for unlawful use of a license.
Act 352 was passed to amend the Arkansas uniform commercial driver license provision. With this amendment, the Arkansas legislature will be able to comply with federal commercial driver license regulations.
To view more of the bills passed by the legislature and signed into law, visit the Arkansas Highway Safety Office Performance Plan and Highway Safety Plan website.
2012 Traffic Car Accident Statistics
In 2012, 560 persons involved in crashes experienced fatal injuries. 3,226 persons involved in such accidents experienced incapacitating injuries. 7,534 people experienced non-incapacitating injuries, and 16,599 people were involved in “possible injury/no visible injury” traffic accidents. And finally, 122,390 persons were involved in accidents that did not involve an injury and resulted in property damage only. According to 5-year trends, these accident numbers have stayed relatively stagnant. Non-incapacitating injuries were at a 5-year low in 2012, considering that in 2008, 2009, and 2010, there were over 9,000 reported non-incapacitating injuries.
There were 58,591 total vehicle accidents in Arkansas in 2012. This was a 10-year low for the state, which in 2004 had a 10-year high of 74,059 accidents in the state. 2012 is the most current year for which full crash statistics are available on the Arkansas State Police Highway Safety website.
Arkansas experienced a major decrease in traffic fatalities from 2012 to 2013. Arkansas had only 483 traffic deaths, as opposed to 560 in 2012, which is a 14% decrease.
Alcohol/Drug Related Accidents
Alcohol and drug intoxication negatively affects a driver’s ability to safely operate a motor vehicle. In 2012, 7% of total crashes in Arkansas were Alcohol/drug related crashes. In the state of Arkansas, there were 58,591 total accidents. Alcohol and drugs played a role in 3,941 of those incidents.
Alcohol and drugs played a major role in total vehicle fatalities in the state. In 2012, there were 504 fatal car crashes in Arkansas. Although this number was once again a 10-year low, alcohol and drugs were present in 43% of those accidents.
National Statistics
In the United States, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) tracks car accidents and traffic fatalities. There were 32,719 fatalities in the United States in 2013, and traffic fatalities decreased from 2012 to 2013 by 4%. Only three states (Montana, Idaho, and New Hampshire) experienced a traffic fatality increase of more than 5%.
No matter the cause of your car accident, if you or a loved one has been injured, call a personal injury lawyer in Rogers, AR that you can trust. Contact the Kieklak law firm. We are highly experienced in auto accident cases, and will advocate zealously for you and your loved ones to get the best possible outcome for you. We litigate aggressively for all of our clients, however big or small your claim is.