Rhode Island Clamps Down on Wrong-Way Car Accidents

Five people were killed last week, including four college students, in a wrong way crash in Massachusetts. Although wrong-way car accidents only amount to 3% of car accidents, they are 12-27 percent more fatal than other types of vehicle accidents. Most of these crashes occur between 12-3am on weekends and often involve alcohol or confusion by the driver.

Rhode Island taking action

Recently, the Rhode island Department of Transportion (RIDOT) began to install wrong way crash avoidance systems in hopes of reducing, or ideally eliminating, these types of car accidents. The system essentially helps notify drivers of their mistake. Modeled after a similar project in San Antonio, Texas, the RIDOT worked with the RI State Police to get a feel for how these wrong-way car accidents happen and what they evolve into. Based on traffic accident reports, RIDOT targeted 25 locations which had a high occurrence of wrong-way crashes. So far 25 of the systems have been installed in RI, with another 25 planned for the next year or so.

How it works.

According to Peter Alviti, director of the RIDOT, the system works in three phases. First, a radar activated early warning system detects a vehicle moving in the wrong direction. A flashing sign is activated to notify the wrong-way driver. Then a camera takes a picture of the vehicle. A second radar detector will determine if the driver corrected their mistake. If not, an alert is sent to the RIDOT as well as state and local police. The alert includes a picture of the vehicle. The RIDOT posts a flashing sign on that same highway to caution other drivers of a wrong-way vehicle.

Can you put a price on preventing a fatality?

The new detection system is part of a $2 million project that included other safety improvements on the highway. The 25 locations break down to about $25,000 each, or $160,000 of the $2 million project. With that in mind, during the last 18 months in all the 25 sites where the systems have been installed there have been zero crashes, zero injuries, and zero fatalities. In the previous five years at the same 25 sites, there were 16 crashes, 23 injuries, and eight fatalities.

Alviti says 66 wrong-way driving incidents happened at these 25 sites without an accident since the new systems were installed. There is no way of knowing which of those incidents would’ve ended in a crash involving injuries or a fatality. But the safety statistics speak for themselves. You can’t put a price on a human life- the avoidance of a fatality or life-changing injury from a car accident is worth any investment.

If you have experienced an injury or loss of a loved one due to a wrong-way car accident in RI or MA, you need the best legal advice now. Do not delay. You need the experience of a personal injury lawyer in RI or MA to help you. Contact Dave Tapalian, your injury attorney in RI and MA, for a free case evaluation. Call (401) 552-5000 or use our online contact form .