Nearly 40,000 lives are lost each year due to traffic accidents in the United States. Rhode Island traffic fatalities alone were up 63% last year. Close to 94% of these fatal crashes are caused by distracted driving and human error. Proponents of self-driving cars claim that autonomous vehicles can greatly…
Rhode Island traffic fatalities are at their highest since 2008, with 83 traffic related fatalities seen in the state in 2017. This is a jump from 51 traffic deaths seen in 2016 and 2014 in Rhode Island. Ironically, 2015 saw the lowest number of traffic fatalities in RI, 45, since…
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, over 1,000 people are injured each day in the United States in accidents involving distracted drivers. Drivers who text and drive are six times more likely to cause a car accident. In an effort to crack down on this serious issue in…
In our tech-savvy society, we constantly want faster and better technology. Automakers scramble to keep up with continually updated tech demands by cramming more intricate technology options into our vehicles. Cars used to have only a small number of buttons and knobs. Now, automakers have upped the ante by adding…
Warwick police put drivers to the test last week when they conducted an undercover assessment to see if drivers complied with Rhode Island state law that requires them to stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk. Financed in part by a Rhode Island Department of Transportation grant, “Walk Wise Warwick”…
Effective June 1, 2018, Rhode Island law will prohibit the use of hand-held cell phones while driving in a move to prevent accidents caused by distracted driving. The new law will further the distracted driving laws Rhode Island put into effect in 2011 making it illegal to send, read, or compose…
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill last week that would speed the introduction of self-driving cars to the road. Following a rise in deadly car crashes in recent years after a decline, proponents say that self-driving vehicles could help remove the human error factor that causes about 94%…
A 46-year old East Providence woman died last week after being hit by a vehicle on Willett Ave. The driver of the vehicle fled the crash scene but later turned himself in. The hit and run driver, Paul Julian Newman of Florida, was identified after a witness took down the…
A bicyclist was struck and killed by a vehicle late Monday in East Providence while riding on Willett Avenue close to midnight. The driver of the vehicle stopped after the crash and the East Providence police are investigating the details of the accident. Just this past June, a vehicle struck…
Rhode Island scores another point in the fight against distracted driving. On Monday, Governor Gina Raimondo signed legislation that will outlaw the use of any hand-held “personal wireless communication device” used for talking while driving. Effective next summer, driving while talking on a hand-held cell phone will be considered illegal in…