Car accidents are a top cause of injuries and deaths throughout the U.S. In Texas, thousands of serious and fatal collisions take place on state, local, and federal highway systems each year. Highway accidents can involve various types of vehicles, including cars, commercial trucks, buses, and motorcycles. They are often caused by human factors, such as driver error.
Types of Highway Accidents
A highway accident refers to a motor vehicle collision that takes place on a highway, freeway, or interstate road. Highways are roads that are designed for high-speed travel and high traffic volumes. They generally have multiple lanes traveling in both directions.
Highway accidents can range in severity from minor fender benders to catastrophic multi-vehicle collisions. They can result in life-changing injuries such as broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, soft-tissue injuries, and spinal cord injuries.
Traffic accidents took 4,481 lives and caused 18,880 people serious injuries.
One person was killed in a car accident in Texas every 1 hour 57 minutes.
Two crashes resulted in six or more fatalities.
The total rate of highway accidents was 1147.56 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled.
The highest rate of accidents occurred on Texas’s Farm to Market highways, at 365.62.
More highway accidents took place in urban areas than in rural areas of Texas.
Highway accidents were most common on roads with four or more undivided lanes.
Statistically, the most dangerous highways in Texas are state and interstate highways, including I-35, TX-71, US-183/TX-193 and US-290/TX-290.
What Causes Highway Accidents?
Almost all highway accidents are preventable. They occur when one or more parties are negligent, or fail to act with proper or reasonable care. A negligent driver, for example, may break traffic laws and pose a risk to other drivers sharing the highway.
Highway accidents can be caused by various factors, including:
Distracted driving
Speeding
The use of alcohol or drugs
Drowsy driving
Making unsafe lane changes
Weaving in and out of multiple lanes
Following too closely/tailgating
Road rage or aggressive driving
Dangerous road defects
Mechanical failures
Addressing the root causes of highway accidents requires assessing the infrastructure and design of the road, as well as its traffic signals, enforcement of traffic laws, and driver education. Technological improvements in vehicles can also help prevent highway accidents.
Liability for a Highway Accident in Texas
If a careless or reckless driver causes a highway accident in Texas, he or she can be held liable for all victims’ injuries, medical bills, and property repair costs. This is how the insurance system works under Texas’s at-fault car accident laws. All drivers in Texas are required to carry liability insurance to cover the costs of any accidents they cause.
If you’ve been injured in a highway accident in Texas, hiring a Dallas car accident attorney can help you understand and protect your legal rights. A personal injury lawyer in Dallas can investigate your crash to determine its cause and gather evidence of negligence to support your claim. You can trust your lawyer to take over an insurance claim and negotiate for maximum financial compensation on your behalf.
