Hard to drive when you can't afford the gas.

Thank the cars, not the drivers.

This is bad news for my boss, who films fatal accidents and sells them to the news.

How are the American highway cripples working out?

maybe our emergency medical efforts are just getting better at keeping people alive (minus limbs or with permanent severe head injuries, etc)

Good. More work for the Death Panels.

/that was terrible derp
//got nuthin'

Less drunk drivers, safer cars.

It's obviously that the cars are safer, not that people are driving any better than before.

/dnrtfa

NuclearScientist: Hard to drive when you can't afford the gas.

It's deaths per miles traveled

No one has jobs to go to.

This is bad news for Obama.

So what about casualties? I bet those are up compared to deaths.

I don't text while driving as much after I ran a red light, clipped a pole, did a 180 in the intersection and slammed into the mentally challenged guy in his wheelchair.

It's because the speed limits are going up.

You know, I always figured GPS units could at least prevent a lot of fender-benders. Instead of rubber-necking every street sign looking for "Park Place", you can just keep driving until you hear "at the next right turn onto Park Place".

ackb4r: This is bad news for my boss, who films fatal accidents and sells them to the news.

Dirty Laundry?

Yeah? Well, my kid just started driving, so kiss your stats goodbye suckers!

SkittlesAreYum: You know, I always figured GPS units could at least prevent a lot of fender-benders. Instead of rubber-necking every street sign looking for "Park Place", you can just keep driving until you hear "at the next right turn onto Park Place".

And then run over all the protesters and counter protesters?

/If only

Barakku: NuclearScientist: Hard to drive when you can't afford the gas.

It's deaths per miles traveled

It's in total number of deaths too. The number includes bicyclists, and pedestrians. Almost every possible metric hasn't been lower in 60 years of record keeping for roadway safety. Link. (new window)

This is good news, for Ralph Nader.

Don't gis that with safe search turned off.

/unless your into that sort of thing.

That'll change if the Libertarians get their way.

Thanks to better vehicles, better roads, and better medical care. Maybe fewer DUIs too?

Welcome to Obama's America.

SkittlesAreYum: You know, I always figured GPS units could at least prevent a lot of fender-benders. Instead of rubber-necking every street sign looking for "Park Place", you can just keep driving until you hear "at the next right turn onto Park Place".

I think they probably do, you just hear about the most amazingly stupid people. If you drive into a lake because your GPS thinks it's a road, you're probably stupid enough to hurt yourself in countless other ways anyway.

Latinwolf: That'll change if the Libertarians get their way.

Derp.Not likely (new window)

Harry Freakstorm: This will change next year when Chrysler debuts the 2012 Macho Grande. The Hemi powered crossover/SUV/Minivan/Pickup will have no air bags, seat belts and will feature a solid chrome steering wheel, high squeal treadless tires and a beer dispenser. The crowning achievement of the Macho Grande is the 60 inch Chrys! entertainment system(tm) that replaces the windshield. From the Chrys! ES, you can surf the web, twitter, facebook, YouTube, watch DVDs. Looking at the road is done through a small periscope when time permits.

Options include a LED Confederate Heritage Flag and a second beer tap for lite beer (available on the Woman's L model only). Commercials will include the slogan "You'll never get over the Macho Grande" and "The Macho Grande, everything else makes you look the ghey"(NTTATWWT).

We must be importing more lemons.

"Joe, don't you remember those movies they showed us in high school, - RED ASPHALT, BLOOD ON THE PAVEMENT?!?"

"You just named two of my favorites, bub."

What about the Funeral Directors, casket companies, headstone makers, florists, grave diggers, cemetery workers, greeting card companies, suit makers, hearse manufacturers, etc.???? Has anyone thought about how this will impact them? Don't they have a PAC to fight all this safety crap?

This is thanks to improved safety technology in automobiles.

How does it relate to traffic crashes?

Maybe I ought to take up drunk driving...

"We could not be happier, but we are not going to sit back on our laurels. We have a long, long way to go," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says.
--------------------------------

Job security quote of the day.

ag-ghm: We must be importing more lemons.

Wow, that's a good r-squared value you got there.

/when did I become a stat nerd?

Knucklepopper: How are the American highway cripples working out?

I don't know, but I have to be at the gym in 26 minutes and I'll ask them.

/lazy cripples never want to give a guy a spot.

Tapakip: Thank the cars, not the drivers.

THIS.

Also: Raise the damned speed limits. We were tootling along at 75++ in Pintos and Corvairs on highways designed for even more. Now we're stuck at 55-65 (except for some vaguely-enlightened states out west) in cars that could easily and comfortably handle 80-100mph on open stretches. The government and Safety Hysteria crippled air travel... least they could do would be allowing us to replace it with rapid travel by car. Hell, you could stratify speed limits by the weight of the vehicle "in the name of safety!", and do the environment a favor by encouraging trading in ridiculous SUVs (limited to, say, 60) for efficient smaller cars (limited to, say, 80-100).

Oh, wait, convenience and efficient transportation will never overcome the junta of insurance companies, MADD and the like, and "think of the children!" legislators.

Sigh.

Tapakip: Thank the cars, not the drivers.

And done.

Spanky_McFarksalot: No one has jobs to go to.

Or can afford the car payment if they do because McD's doesn't pay that well.

Traffic is so bad the average speed limit is now about 25 MPH even on the freeways. Might have something to do with it.

It's probably because all the dumbasses are in foreign countries killing brown people instead of driving on our roads.

Need to know #wrecks/mile driven, #wrecks/capita, #fatalites/wreck.

Blind_Io: How does it relate to traffic crashes?

Overall crashes, both in number and in rate are also lower - down some 35% since 1988:

Link (pdf, new window)

Youvegastar: It's probably because all the dumbasses are in foreign countries killing brown people instead of driving on our roads.

You