Winter weather in Illinois may make driving hazardous, but even in the best of weather conditions auto accidents can happen. Oftentimes these accidents are due to driver error. In fact, some parts of the state have seen a troubling number of crashes since the beginning of January.
From January 1, 2018 up until January 24, 2018, there have been 185 motor vehicle accidents in the metro-east area of Illinois. Recently, three car accidents took place all within one hour of each other. In the 185 accidents, five of them were fatal, such as one where a woman was hit by a motorist going the wrong way down the road.
Despite these high numbers, one police officer does not think they are so strange for this area. He maintains that the number of collisions has remained steady over the past few years. Starting in January 1, 2016, through January 23, 2016, there were 191 collisions in the metro-east area.
Despite that, the officer acknowledges that this situation is problematic. According to him, Illinois District 11 sees the second most number of collisions in the state. Back in 2015, St. Clair County saw the fourth most number of deadly accidents in Illinois. In that county, from 2012 to 2015, the number of accidents went up by 500. When it comes to fatal accidents, in 2012 there were 27 collisions in which 28 people died. In 2016, those numbers went up to 38 collisions in which 41 people died.
According to the officer, this area sees more car accidents because of the heavy population in the area travelling at high speeds down the interstate. He says many accidents are the result of reckless driving, cars changing lanes, cars following too close behind other cars, drivers going above the posted speed limit and motorists who are driving while intoxicated.
In the end, it is up to all motorists to drive with due care. The failure to do so could cause an accident that injures or kills others on the road. Victims of car accidents or their loved ones may want to determine whether they can pursue a personal injury lawsuit against the responsible party.
Source: Belleville News-Democrat, “There have been 185 crashes in the metro-east since Jan. 1. Is that normal?,” Kaley Johnson, Jan. 24, 2018