Over holiday weekends instances of negligent driving often increase. The combination of celebratory activities with mass auto transit during a holiday increase opportunities for serious distractions such as texting and driving or drinking and driving. It is for these reasons we often hear of states involved in extra efforts during these holiday weekends to address negligent driving issues. The state of Connecticut is no exception.
A serious effort by Connecticut police over 2012’s Memorial Day weekend resulted in an investigation of 279 crashes, 77 drunk driving arrests, 1,797 tickets for speeding and 816 citations for failure to wear seatbelts. Consistently increased enforcement ideally lessens the likelihood of serious car accidents. This is because drivers are hopefully more careful knowing authorities are on high alert. Yet, these numbers are strikingly similar to the 2011 Memorial Day weekend.
One piece of goods news is that the number of fatal accidents which occurred on Connecticut streets over the Memorial Day weekend was down from last year.
The Connecticut police will continue their aggressive pursuit of negligent driving through the summer months. This summer is also the first time the state will run a “Click it or Ticket” campaign, attempting to encourage seatbelt use.
These efforts are all part of a larger hope to address the number of aggressive and unsafe drivers on the road. As previous posts have mentioned, the state of Connecticut has engaged in a number of different tactics in order to reduce accidents and fatalities.
Dangerous and distracted driving is never acceptable. One wrong decision can cause serious injuries and even cost someone their life. If an individual has been involved in an accident and has been injured by a negligent driver, they may be entitled to compensation for injury and wage loss.
Source: Norwich Bulletin, “Connecticut troopers respond to 279 weekend accidents,” May 29, 2012
