Posted on April 09, 2018 in Uncategorized

A motorcyclist was left in critical condition after being hit by a car on March 19 in South Austin. While no definitive cause has been stated for the accident, the scene indicated that the driver did not see the motorcyclist coming and struck him from the side. As of this writing no charges have been filed, but it is important to remember that all drivers should be especially alert for motorcyclists on Texas roads, with a failure to do so having serious consequences.

Motorcycle Accidents Happen Frequently

Texas is a state that loves its motorcycles, and with a higher number of riders comes a higher number of accidents. Data from the Texas Department of Transportation shows nearly 500 motorcyclists killed in 2015, while only California and Florida had comparable numbers in that year – the next highest number was almost 300 fewer, in South Carolina. While laws about helmet use and other safety measures may affect fatality numbers, issues such as visibility or speed do not have such easy fixes as others.

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 Posted on April 04, 2018 in Uncategorized

The North Pine Street Bridge across I-35 was the scene of a pedestrian accident on March 13, 2018, leaving one man dead and one driver possibly facing criminal charges. The man was struck around 5am, dying on the scene. The driver skidded into a ditch along the road after hitting the man, and while as of this writing no criminal charges have been filed, San Antonio police have not yet ruled out the possibility.

More Common Than Believed

I-35 is among the busiest and fastest-traveled highways in the state of Texas, and pedestrians are often struck when attempting to cross it at points other than bridges or crosswalks. A report from Smart Growth America ranks San Antonio as one of the top 20 most dangerous metro areas for pedestrians, with only Houston ranking higher in Texas. One might assume that more pedestrian accidents would occur on country roads, with poorer visibility, but a higher proportion of fatal accidents occur on city streets.

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 Posted on April 02, 2018 in Uncategorized

The morning of March 15 saw lane closures on Loop 1604, as a man in his 30s was killed when he ran his car into a concrete barrier, going the wrong way. While no information has been released, as of this writing, that sheds light on the driver’s personal information or reason for the crash, it is worth noting that wrong-way accidents are common in San Antonio, and can strike when one least expects.

A Lack of Research

Despite the amount of wrong-way accidents that occur, research done by the Texas Transportation Institute shows a surprising lack of research and data on the matter. The most recent comprehensive investigation of these trends dates back to 2004, and while the data is still illuminating, it must be taken with a proverbial grain of salt. Still, certain patterns can be identified, including the most common origin of wrong-way collisions (freeway ramps, most notably those which are not well labeled), and the frequency of substance abuse (between 50 and 75 percent of drivers involved had been either drinking or using illicit substances).

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 Posted on March 29, 2018 in Uncategorized

On March 8, a big rig hauling a load of liquid nitrogen caught on fire near Parmer Lane, shutting down SH 130 in Travis County and causing the evacuation of a half-mile area due to risk of the truck exploding. While no casualties have been reported, many could have resulted; the truck’s cab was engulfed, and pedestrians or passing cars could have been struck by the big rig or parts of the trailer burned away. Thankfully, these outcomes were averted, but next time they might not be.

Whose Negligence?

When a truck gets into an accident, there are more people to whom negligence might be imputed than there are with most automobiles. If a car causes an accident, the only person that usually winds up on the proverbial hook is the driver. If a big rig is involved in an accident, the trucker might be sued, but more often, the trucker’s employer and/or mechanic might also be involved, depending on the facts of the case. There are simply more moving parts on a big rig that have a chance of malfunctioning or being maintained in an inappropriate manner.

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 Posted on March 27, 2018 in Uncategorized

On March 7, an elderly woman died of her injuries after a car crash in Lago Vista. The crash happened two nights previously after the woman crossed the center line, striking a pickup truck head-on. The other driver, a young man in his 20s, is still recovering. These types of crashes are more common than one might think, especially if one or both drivers are elderly or has other problems which might impair their vision or ability to drive in general.

High Fatality Rates for Head-On Collisions

Frontal collisions yield a high number of fatalities and injuries, though not as many as rollover crashes, because there is more of the car between the passenger and the road. There were 638 fatalities from head-on crashes in Texas in 2016, and the numbers are roughly proportional nationwide. This may not seem like many deaths, but proportionally, it is a high percentage because fewer head-on collisions occur generally.

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 Posted on March 22, 2018 in Uncategorized

In January, two boys in Cedar Park, outside of Round Rock, engaged in drag racing, causing the deaths of two young boys when one of them crashed. On February 28, a negligence lawsuit was filed by the family of the deceased children, asking for significant damages, based at least partially on the defendant’s alleged lack of remorse following the incident. If you have been in this position or been in a position where you have lost a loved one due to someone else’s alleged negligence, it is important to understand what the law allows and what it does not.

An Epidemic

Prior to 2003, drag racing was considered a minor traffic violation, but after films like The Fast and the Furious began to grow in popularity, more and more incidents began occurring, and more injuries and fatalities were chalked up to the trend. Laws were modified in that year, upgrading drag racing from a traffic violation to a misdemeanor, which is punishable by a significant fine (as high as $2,000) and up to 180 days in jail, with increasing penalties for a second and third offense.

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 Posted on March 20, 2018 in Uncategorized

During the last week of February, heavy rain necessitated closure of multiple lanes on I-35, most recently around San Pedro Avenue and Thousand Oaks, as storms led to abandoned cars and unsuspecting drivers heading into water far too deep to drive through. While as of this writing no fatalities have occurred during these recent storms, however, it is possible for these conditions to lead to accidents and injuries, especially if not handled appropriately by the municipality or entity that maintains the roads. If there are no signs or other indications, accidents can certainly happen.

Road Maintenance Matters in Accidents

While many simply do not think of it, poor road maintenance absolutely can make a difference in whether a traffic accident may or may not occur. However, it can be difficult to make the case stick, so to speak, because more must be proven in order to receive compensation than, for example, a missing road sign, or a lack of lighting. You must be able to show that the poor road conditions not only existed, but you must prove that they were a major cause of your accident, rather than an incidental occurrence.

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 Posted on March 15, 2018 in Uncategorized

On February 17, an accident briefly closed part of I-37, as an SUV hit the wall, rolling over several times before coming to a stop. Two women were inside, and one escaped major injury, but the other was killed at the scene. The crash took some time to clean up, as the car had shed metal and debris all over the road. Unfortunately, such a pattern is all too common in rollover accidents, and it is one of the reasons they consistently are the most deadly type of car crash.

Rollovers Cause the Most Fatalities

If one examines statistics from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), one can see that rollover accidents alone accounted for 31 percent of all car crash deaths. This is markedly higher than other types of accidents by themselves, though it is perhaps understandable. An accident is classified as a rollover if the roof of the vehicle hits the ground at least once, and when that happens, those inside the vehicle will often sustain severe injury, especially if they are not wearing a seatbelt.

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 Posted on March 13, 2018 in Uncategorized

SH 71 and Pedernales Summit Parkway has been a problem for drivers for quite some time, with several accidents being reported at that specific intersection, and all of them being of the same character. Whenever the weather is inclement, hydroplaning is reported, with multiple crashes occasionally being observed on the same day. On the morning of February 22, work began on SH 71 at Pedernales Summit Parkway to remove the top layer of pavement to increase traction on the road. While the work should cut down on accidents, it can also help shield TXDOT and the municipality of Austin or Del Valle (depending on the agency working on the road) from potential negligence liability.

Personal Injury and Negligence

Car accident cases are most often brought under a legal theory of negligence, alleging that the poor conduct of another – most commonly, the other driver involved in an accident – was the direct cause of your injuries. In order to show that an accident was due to someone’s negligence, you must be able to show four criteria. They are: 1) the existence of a duty of care between plaintiff and defendant; 2) an evident breach of this duty; 3) a showing that your injuries were caused directly by the defendant’s actions, and 4) proof of tangible injury (in other words, injuries that would require medical attention to address).

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 Posted on March 08, 2018 in Uncategorized

On February 12, every driver’s worst nightmare happened to the driver of a grey sedan in a parking lot just off Nacogdoches Road in San Antonio. He was attempting to leave the parking lot of an H-E-B when he failed to observe an 18-wheeler backing up, and wound up with his car lodged beneath the trailer. While the driver in this incident appears to be relatively unharmed, cases like this can be very different if injuries occur.

Trucking Accidents in Texas Are Common

Truck crashes in Texas are much more common than people may think. Bexar County in particular registered 2,517 crashes alone in 2016 (the most recent available data), with as many as 34,000 total crashes in the entire state. Almost six hundred fatalities were registered in that time, with Bexar County contributing 26 – only Dallas and Harris County had more. The reasons for this are primarily to do with the urban nature of those counties, and the congested nature of their roads, but there are multiple potential causes.

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