When a year comes to a close it is not uncommon for individuals to take a moment to look back at the previous year. Likewise, it is also a good time for state authorities to do the same. Ohio public-safety officials recently shared the number of traffic fatalities that occurred in the state in 2013. The results can only be described as good for residents of the state as the number is the lowest it has been since 1936 when the state first started to keep a record of traffic fatalities.
The preliminary number revealed that 981 deaths due to motor vehicle crashes occurred last year. In comparison, the highest number of recorded crashes occurred in 1969. That year, 2,778 individuals died after being involved in a car crash. The dramatic decrease over the course of the last few decades is likely due to a variety of factors including:
- Improvements to freeways
- Safer automobiles
- Emergency care that is of a higher quality
- Law enforcement
- Public education
Franklin County was one of two counties that saw a significant drop. Compared to 2012, the county experienced 13 fewer deaths in 2013.
While all would likely agree that it is a good thing that fewer fatal accidents occurred throughout the state in 2013, that means little to those who were either injured or lost a loved one in a motor vehicle accident last year. Depending on the circumstances surrounding those accidents, some of those individuals may have sought compensation via civil lawsuits. Because these types of legal actions must be filed within a certain amount of time to be viable, individuals contemplating this course of action usually benefit from meeting with a personal injury lawyer sooner rather than later.
Source: The Columbus Dispatch, “Ohio roads are safer than ever,” Theodore Decker, Jan. 2, 2014