| Feb 02 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryTRAFFIC NEWS: SPEED + CELL PHONE = FATALITYHouston Police are investigating a fatal traffic collision Wednesday afternoon in which the driver who died apparently was both speeding and using his cell phone at the time. Police said a man driving a Ford Taurus on US 290 inbound at Mangum apparently lost control of his vehicle, overcorrected and veered across several traffic lanes, hitting at least two other vehicles in the process. A pickup truck that his vehicle struck then hit two other vehicles in a chain reaction. The pickup truck’s driver was taken to a hospital in undetermined condition. Police said the Taurus driver seemed to have been speeding as well as using a cell phone when the collision occurred. They said alcohol did not seem to have been a factor. Studies show that using a cell phone behind the wheel is as bad as driving while intoxicated. Approximately 5,000 Americans die each year in traffic collisions involving distracted drivers whose attention to the road was diverted by calls or texts while on cell phones. Texas has no state law banning cell phone use or texting by drivers, unless they are school bus drivers or novice drivers. A state law bans cell phone use while driving in school zones, though school districts are required to post signs to that effect or the law does not apply. Some school districts cannot afford to do that. However, some Texas municipalities have passed laws making texting by all drivers at all times in all places illegal, including San Antonio and Austin. Nine states ban all cell phone use by all drivers, and 35 states ban text messaging by all drivers. Jim S. Adler & Associates urges motorists to hang up and drive. A call or a text cannot be worth a life. |
| Jan 20 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryTRAFFIC NEWS: MOTORCYCLIST HURTA man taking a “joyride” on a motorcycle owned by a friend was injured critically Thursday night in far north Harris County, reported Harris County Sheriff’s deputies.
The accident occurred about 9 a.m. on the feeder road of the North Freeway over Cypress Creek. Deputies said the motorcyclist was not familiar with motorcycles and was heading north on the feeder at high rate of speed when he crashed into the rear of another vehicle. The man on the motorcycle was not wearing protective helmet and was taken to a local hospital in critical condition. Also injured were two small children who were riding in the back seat of the vehicle that was hit from behind. Reportedly the vehicle’s rear window shattered and the children suffered cuts from the glass. Under Texas law, motorcycle operators and passengers over 21 years old are not required to wear a protective helmet. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, when Texas abandoned its law requiring helmets on all motorcyclists in 1997, operator fatalities rose by 31 percent in the next year under the new law. That law remains in effect. |
| Jan 10 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryMassive wreck causes legal tangleA 79-car pile-up near Beaumont, Texas had authorities scrambling in the early morning hours of Thursday, January 5, 2012. News reports said that 54 people were taken to Beaumont area hospitals. Officials used the Jaws of Life to cut three victims out of wrecked cars. Victims injured in the accident were said have injuries ranging from broken bones to abrasions and whiplash. |
| Jan 05 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryTRAFFIC NEWS: 54 INJURED IN 50-VEHICLE PORT ARTHUR PILEUPA mix of early morning fog and smoke from marsh wildfires was blamed for poor visibility which led to a pileup of at least 50 vehicles on Texas 73 near Port Arthur Thursday morning. Fifty-four people were injured, four critically, investigators said.
The pileup occurred shortly after 5:30 a.m. Thursday with a number of related accidents on the highway’s eastbound lanes. The location was west of the Taylors Bayou bridge and near the Veolia Processing Plant. |
| Jan 03 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryTRAFFIC NEWS: DALLAS’ STEMMONS REOPENING AFTER SEMI CRASHDallas’ Stemmons Freeway, also known as I-35E, is reopening after an early morning crash of a semi truck shut down the southbound freeway north of downtown. A tractor trailer reportedly jackknifed and overturned, blocking the freeway.
Police said the driver of the 18 wheeler apparently lost control as the big rig hit a guardrail near Houston Street and the diesel truck overturned. The driver was not seriously injured, but the large truck’s load of scrap metal spilled across the freeway at the traffic accident site. The freeway was completely closed for the inbound morning commute up until about 8:30 a.m., when one lane was reopened and much of the debris had been moved to the side of the road. Until then, much of the Stemmons traffic was redirected to I-30. |
| Dec 02 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryTRAFFIC NEWS: Katy teen dies in collision with 18-wheelerA teenager from Katy was killed and another was injured when the pickup truck in which they were riding collided with an 18-wheeler at the intersection of the Katy Freeway feeder road and Katy Mills Boulevard. (more…)
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| Oct 26 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryTRAFFIC NEWS: Houston red light crash kills one
A driver in north Harris County has died after his car was struck early Sunday morning in north Harris County by another driver who apparently ran a red light. The victim has been identified as Eduardo Devora. Devora died at Ben Taub Hospital. His car was eastbound on Frick in the 2500 block when a southbound green SUV Veteran’s Memorial Drive slammed into it. The case is under investigation.
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| Jun 03 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryU.S. transportation chief slams his agency for allowing deadly bus line to continue
LaHood is upset because the DOT agency overseeing truck and bus safety, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, did not stop Sky Express bus line of Charlotte, NC from operating despite alarming safety violations. |
The way Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood sees it, his own agency shares responsibility for a catastrophic bus crash in Virginia Tuesday that killed four innocent people.| Jun 02 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryPerry vetoes Texas bill to ban texting while driving
It’s been said by scientists that distracted driving is as bad as drunk driving, and statistics would seem to bear this out. As driving distractions continue to mushroom, so do traffic deaths and injuries due to distracted drivers, who could kill up to 6,000 persons on America’s roads and highways this year. The rate of distracted driving deaths, in fact, has doubled in recent years. |
Texas Gov. Rick Perry has vetoed a new bill the Texas Legislature passed to add Texas to the ranks of 32 other states making it illegal to read or send text messages while driving. Perry says government shouldn’t “micromanage” adults’ behavior, and instead education should be emphasized to steer people from the dangerous habit.| Apr 29 |
Archive for the 'traffic accident' CategoryToyota’s Troubles: Now it’s a Tundra recall
Toyota Motor Sales USA estimates that 0.5 percent of its 2011 Tundras have the defect. The company is recalling 51,000 models. Owners can expect a recall letter in the mail in the next several weeks. In the last year, the company has had to recall 14 million Toyotas to fix defects. Some were deadly. Faulty floor mats and sticky gas pedals are blamed for fatal accidents caused by cars that accelerated suddenly, reaching high rates of speed as they careened off the road with disastrous results. Another Toyota recall involved a glitch in braking software. Toyota is facing dozens of lawsuits in the United States filed on behalf of victims who were injured or killed in its vehicles. |
Attention owners of Toyota 2011 Tundras: Some of the trucks have a potentially dangerous glitch. These 2011 Tundras have a rear drive shaft that can break .