Drop in San Francisco Auto Accidents Over Labor Day Weekend
The California Highway Patrol had reason to celebrate after the end of the summer season in San Francisco this year. Traffic fatalities were dramatically lower than they were last year, although arrests were up.
The Labor Day weekend, long dreaded by police, was actually the safest it’s been in a year, The CHP reported. The increased arrests probably have had a hand to play making sure that offenders were off the streets. The number of auto accidents was 23 this Labor Day in San Francisco, down from 42 last year.
A surprising factor that came to light over the weekend was how important seat belts are in saving lives. Of the 19 fatal accidents that occurred on roads patrolled by the California Highway Patrol, 3 involved motorcycle accidents, and the remaining were car accidents. Of these 16 car accident fatalities, nine of the deaths were related to not wearing seat belts. This has pleasantly surprised the CHP that they had been able to drill the ”wear your seatbelts” message into the minds of motorists. As they admit, it’s hard to find people during patrols who are not wearing their seatbelt. Apparently, the message hasn’t penetrated as far enough as it should have. Sadly enough, it also means that had those nine people been wearing seat belts, there’s a good chance that they would have survived the car accident.
As far as arrests for drunk driving are concerned, the numbers for this year are slightly higher than last year across the state. 1416 people were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs this year, and the increase is only slightly higher than last year. In the Bay Area, there were 377 arrests, which is down slightly from the figure last year.
Overall, Bay Area law enforcement agencies were all out cracking down on drunk driving over the Labor Day weekend. At least 125 officers were involved in a regional “Avoid DUI” campaign conducted over the weekend. The measure had more officers stationed at busy points, and several checkpoints were set upon to detect and detain drunk drivers. Heavy ticketing was conducted on violators. The route to a motorist’s mind runs through his wallet, we guess.
Lowered street activity in general could also have been a factor this year, although California Patrol officers haven’t mentioned this. There were fewer people out driving on the streets. The cost of gas has made it hard to be blasé about driving about without a care, as before. Fewer vehicles on the streets also equal fewer auto accidents.
Even with that possibility, kudos to the California Highway Patrol for pulling off a largely safe weekend for us.
The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of car accidents. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.
