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Zero traffic fatalities — that’s the ambitious goal set this past week by the Transportation Department. Zero, zip, nada. That’s a bold ambition, given that we have been seeing record numbers of deaths the past two years. Last year was the bloodiest year since 1966, and this year is expected to be 10 percent worse….

Brain injuries can occur from pure accident to someone else’s negligence or malicious intent. They can even arise from the hazards of a job. Such injuries range from mild to severe and have a variety of symptoms that are physical, psychological or sensory for which the effects can materialize gradually or suddenly. In some cases,…

More than one third (36 percent) of all auto claims that involve animal collisions on U.S. highways occur between the months of September and November, according to PRNewsWire. The spike is in part due to animal migration patterns, particularly of larger animals like deer and elk. In particular, there is a 67% increase in animal…

Since smart phones have become omnipresent, the conundrum of solving the distracted driving problem has existed. Too often, news stories will emerge of distracted teens or adults texting while driving, causing, at best, a minor fender bender, and at worst, a serious accident with fatalities. States across the nation have reacted, passing laws to punish…

Across the country, motorcycle deaths are declining, mostly as a result of increased safety regulations. While helmet and other laws are reducing the number of motorcycle accidents yearly, California has seen an increase of 23 percent in bike accidents and fatalities between 2003 and 2011, according to a recent article.  As helmets have been shown…

We all say that we like streets to be brightly lit for greater driving safety at night. In the past few years many cities, including Sacramento and Davis, rushed to install LED street lamps. The new-era lamps were brighter, they reduced energy costs, and they lasted longer than their predecessors – about 15 to 20…

According to data compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 726 bicyclists were killed in 2014 as a result of vehicle accidents. This figure accounts for a little over 2 percent of the number of individuals injured or killed that year due to traffic accidents. Californians who are fond of bicycling may be surprised…

California residents may be interested to know that according to a projection from the U.S. Census Bureau, there will be roughly 54 million people in America who are 70 and older. Of those in that age group, 80 percent are expected to be licensed drivers, and that number could be even higher if car safety…

A question we are often asked is, Is it getting any better out there? For all the innovations in safety equipment, and heightened consciousness on the part of drivers – are our roads and highways actually safer? It’s an excellent question, and the answer is yes, a little bit. But it’s a complicated trend to…

California truck drivers will need to continue taking their required 30-minute breaks during their first eight hours of driving time each day. In August 2016, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration denied a petition by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Association to lift the break requirement. The CVSA represents inspectors of trucks and buses nationwide. The…