Sprawling Metropolitan Cities Have Lower Accident Rates

indianapolis.jpgMetropolitan areas like Indianapolis are likely to have lower accident rates, compared to smaller cities. A new study by the Centers For Disease Control And Prevention analyzed overall national accident death rates in 2009, and then compared these rates with the average fatality rates in 50 of the biggest American cities.

The researchers found that people, who lived in the 50 largest metropolitan areas of the United States, represented just about 54% of the population that year, but comprised only about 40% of all traffic accident fatalities. The overall national fatality rate was around 11.1% that year, but in these 50 metropolitan cities, the rate was just about 8%.

In the 50 metropolitan cities, the fatality rate varied from a low of 4.4 to a high of 17 .8 fatalities per 100,000 population. The Indiana-Carmel Metropolitan region had a total of 141 fatalities in 2009 with a fatality rate of 8.2 per 100,000 population.

When it came to the 15-24 age group of drivers, the fatality rate was slightly higher. The national fatality rate for people in this age group was 17.3 per 100,000 population. However, in the metropolitan cities, the rate dropped to just about 10.9. In the Indiana Carmel Metropolitan region, there were 43 accident fatalities involving people of this age group in 2009, with a fatality rate of 19.2, which is much higher than the national fatality rate for this age group.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is especially concerned about the high fatality rates involving motorists between the age of 15 and 24. The agency recommends more stringent graduated driver’s licensing programs for teenage motorists to restrict independent driving, and slowly introduce young drivers to more sophisticated driving conditions.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not have an explanation for why a large metropolitan city like Indianapolis has lower accident fatality rates compared to a smaller city. The agency believes that sprawling metropolitan cities are likely to have lower accident death rates compared to more compact metropolitan areas.

Whether you are a motorist in a metropolitan area or a small city, you can reduce your risk of an accident by avoiding a number of destructive driving behaviors, like driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or using cell phones while driving. Additionally, states could focus more on reducing the number of alcohol-impaired drivers, thereby reducing the numbers of drunk driving accidents. Stronger use of sobriety checkpoints can help reduce the risks of alcohol-related car accidents. Additionally, states can also save more lives every year, by investing in better law-enforcement activities to prevent distracted driving.

The Indiana personal injury lawyers at Montross Miller Muller Mendelson Kennedy represent persons who have been injured in car accidents across Indiana. If you have been the victim of an accident, consult an experienced personal injury lawyer at our firm.