In many ways we are moving in the wrong direction.  Kentucky has been too slow in banning texting while driving. Automobile accidents due to distracted driving are increasing. The auto manufacturers are moving at breakneck speed to put more devices on their vehicles while lawmakers are dragging their feet.   

There has been some progress.  President Obama has banned text messaging while driving by all federal employees.  He views text messaging as a deadly epidemic.  I think we have seen through our behavior over the last few years that voluntary compliance of not using a cell phone or texting while driving is way beyond hope. We have too many gadgets in our cars.   

There are some states that have pushed the envelope such as Utah which punishes drivers who killed others while texting with the same penalties as drunk drivers.  That is up to 15 years in prison.  Ironically this law was able to be passed only after two rocket booster scientists were killed after being hit by an oncoming car that swerved into their lane and was texting at the time.   

            Focus Driven has a new web site www.focusdriven.org.   This web site has information on distracted driving, help for victims and family members and ways to get involved.   

In Louisville, Kentucky the police have stated that texting and driving is a growing problem on our roads.  It has been reported that Louisville lawmakers are looking to some 19 other states that already have laws against it for guidance.  Their real concern is how we enforce the law. 

Denise Harper Angel, a Kentucky state senator, is sponsoring a bill which would ban texting while driving. This bill is getting a lot of support.  The bill made it out of the Kentucky House on an 80 to 16 vote. Not only is texting while driving banned, but cell phone use is not allowed for those drivers under 18 years of age.  

There has even been a new phrase coined for texting while driving which is called intexticated.  I hope the new law will focus on banning all texting while driving and not just focus on teenagers.  It is time for us to finally make this change in Kentucky.  Call your State Senator today. If we work together you can save lives.  

            Groups, such as FocusDriven, who are pushing for texting while driving bans, are at odds with the automakers in many aspects.  We all know that any time we take our eyes away attracting high interest from Intel and Google as a source of business in the future.  The dollar from the road it increases the chance of an automobile accident. Despite this auto manufacturers have unveiled new technology, which although it is really cool, will add to this problem. In the near future cars will have Internet connected computers right in the front seat, smack dab in the middle of the dashboard. These new dashboard computers are signs are definitely there. This is technology that people must have.  It is viewed as an item people will not be able to live without. The screens are approximately 10?inches and located above the gear shift. They show high definition videos, 3?D maps, and web pages.   

Safety advocate groups are up in arms claiming that these devices will just create more deaths.  Nicholas A. Ashford, a professor of technology and policy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, stated “unfortunately and sadly, it is a continuation of the pursuit of profit over safety, for both drivers and pedestrians”.   

Audi has a system on its way that will be available this fall.  It is a pop down with a touch pad.  Apparently a notice that pops up when the system is on reads “Please only use the online service when traffic conditions allow you to do so safely”.  Does Audi really believe this is going to work?  If somebody has this toy and it is available any warning will be ignored or a distraction in and of itself.   

There are voice commands systems that are available from some manufacturers but the video is still going to be available and located front and center.  Other companies, such as Ford and their new My Ford system, will allow the driver to adjust the temperature for a friend while the car is in motion but it will only allow you to use the web browser when the car is in park.  These systems are going to have WiFi capability and USB ports. They are a computer in the car.  As predicted by Michael Rayfield, a general manager at NVIDIA, a chip company, that cars are going to become the most immersive consumer electronic device we have.  

We have come a long ways since the horse and buggy days and in some ways maybe we should go back. When we are driving we should be only driving!

            I often focus on driving safety and on how you can be a safer driver. I write about keeping our Kentucky roadways safer. How you can avoid serious automobile accidents is another topic I blog on.  A tragic and unfortunate accident last weekend reminds me that there are also auto accidents that occur after your car breaks down. Traffic accidents occur while a vehicle is disabled on the road.  Visibility is a key factor in your safety after a car breaks down. 

David Meredith and Omar Lopez were killed after they were hit by a pickup truck on Washburn Avenue in rural Jefferson County, Kentucky.  This accident occurred after Meredith and Lopez’s vehicle had been in a minor rear-end collision on Washburn Avenue.  Apparently the men were standing behind their truck after the accident and blocking the taillights. This made it difficult for the vehicle coming from behind to see the car in the road.  Additionally there was fog in the area. This made visibility even more of an issue.

 Any time you’re on the road visibility is something you should be aware of.  This is the case whether you are a pedestrian, a bicyclist, or a disabled motorist.  You need to make yourself visible.  Bicyclists have reflectors and bright-colored jerseys that some would say make us look ridiculous.  Runners wear vests to make them more visible if they are jogging on the road in the early or late hours of the day.  The occupants of a disabled vehicle need to take precautions to make that car visible on the roadway.  Reflective triangles should be placed behind the car. You can purchase them at almost any automotive store. They should always be used.  Emergency flashers should be turned on.  Do anything you can do to make yourself more visible.  If you do not take these precautions drivers coming up on the accident scene or on you may not have a chance to avoid a tragic accident.

            A few years ago I represented a truck driver in what I would call a freak accident.  A semi tractor-trailer was traveling down I-65 south near Shepherdsville.  The trailer came loose from the tractor and came to a stop in the middle southbound lane of I-65 in Bullitt County, Kentucky.  When the trailer came off there was no power going to the lights on the back of the trailer.  Additionally no reflective tape was on the trailer.  The driver had no triangles or flares to put behind him.  He attempted to get the trailer re-connected to the tractor. 

My client was driving a tractor-trailer and also headed south on I-65.  He stated to me that he was driving along and he knew something was different but it just looked like there was nothing there.  He compared it to a black hole.  By the time he realized that there was a trailer stopped in the middle lane of the expressway he had no chance and slammed into the back of the disabled trailer.  A passerby pulled him out of his flaming truck.  Tragically the other driver was killed as he was between his tractor and trailer at the time.  My client had hit his trailer. This tragic truck accident could have been avoided had emergency flashers, flares or reflective triangles been used. Unfortunately, none of this equipment was even in the truck.

            I bring this up because you never know what is going to happen on the highway.  You need to be cautious and careful at all times.  I represented a client that had just been in a rear end collision. As he was walking back to the driver’s side of his car another car came flying by. Luckily his front door was open and he jumped into the front seat to avoid being hit. Any disabled motorist, whether it be from a traffic automobile accident, a motorcycle accident, a truck accident, or simply a blown rod in your engine, must make themselves visible on the road.  Take precautionary measures to make yourself visible to traffic.

·        Make sure your car lights are on

·        Place reflective triangles out behind the disabled vehicle

·        Place flares behind the vehicle

·        Get yourself off the roadway

·        Wait for emergency assistance to come to your assistance. 

If you take preventive measures you can keep from becoming a statistic. You can avoid a tragic motor vehicle accident. In this way you will be able to avoid the tragedy that happened last weekend on Washburn Avenue.

            We have made it 2010.  How many people have made their New Year’s resolutions?  I have a suggestion every Kentuckian should resolve to be a safer driver. We must attempt to make our Kentucky roads safer.  How can we avoid serious automobile accidents?  How can we avoid striking a pedestrian or a bicycle? How can we be more careful and avoid motorcycle accidents?  The answer is obviously yes.  In getting 2010 off to a good start I decided to give you my top ten ways to be a safe driver.  Here we go.

            10.       Pay attention to what is going on around you. 

            9.         Expect the unexpected.  You never know when you’re going to have to react.  I’ve been trying to teach this lesson to my daughter as she learns to drive.  I’ll let her tell you some of the stories at a later time. 

            8.         Don’t tailgate. 

            7.         As a bicyclists you must obey the rules of the road.  Don’t ride on the sidewalks.  Make sure that you are aware of what the cars are doing.  Remember cars can’t see you as well as you see them. Drivers of cars need to watch out for bikes too. Remember that bikes have the same rights as cars. 

            6.         Motorcycles don’t needlessly speed and be aware of what cars are doing. When I ski I need to watch out for other skiers as well as snowboarders, who go down a hill differently then a skier. I have to be aware of this and respect the differences to avoid an accident. A driver of a car needs to have the same respect for other vehicles that are on the road. 

            5.         Avoid road rage.  A calm driver is a safe driver. 

            4.         Be courteous.  This goes along with No. 5. Let another car into traffic.  Don’t cut them off.  It won’t kill you. This goes a long way toward helping to control a driver’s temper and traffic running smoothly.  Remember everyone is trying to get somewhere in a hurry and where they are getting is just as important as where you are going. 

            3.         Remember a yellow light means to stop, not speed up and try to get through the intersection.  If you can stop safely you should.  A yellow light only means that you should clear the intersection if you are in it. If you speed up at a yellow light sooner or later you will cause an accident. 

            2.         Make sure your car is in safe working order.  Make sure the tires, brakes, etc. are all working properly. Have your mechanic check your car out. It is a lot cheaper than being in an accident. 

            1.         Drumbeat please – don’t be a distracted driver.  Get off your cell phone.  Don’t text.  Don’t  look up phone numbers.  Don’t put on your makeup.  Distracted Driving is the No. 1 cause of accidents in America today overtaking drunk driving (which you obviously shouldn’t do either, so we will make it 1A). I actually saw a young girl try to text and drive on the snowy roads last night on the way home. She probably ended up in a ditch some where.

            I’m sure I could easily have a top 25 list of ways to avoid automobile accidents. I hope this gets your mind thinking on how you can avoid automobile accidents and be a safer driver on our Kentucky roads.  Nobody is a winner if there is an accident.  Let’s keep them to a minimum this year.

Tomorrow is December 23.  For most people this is not a date that comes with great anticipation, but for Seinfeld fans we all know that December 23 is Festivus.  As Frank called it: “A Festivus for the rest of us.” 

The reason I bring this up is in the Seinfeld episode during the Festivus dinner you gather your family around and you tell them all the ways they have disappointed you over the past year.  This is called the airing of grievances. 

So I thought I would air my grievances about Louisville drivers and how their actions can cause serious automobile accidents here in Kentucky.  Car accidents can have severe consequences and distracted driving is even worse during the holiday season. We all have our minds on other things.  Holiday road rage runs wild.  Here are a few of the grievances I have against some of those drivers that use the Louisville roadways:

            1. Bicyclists That Ignore the Law.    As I was riding to work this morning I got off the expressway at Jefferson Street.  As I was driving down Jefferson Street I saw someone riding their bike to work, which I commend.  The same laws of the road apply to bike riders as to cars.  This particular rider, during rush hour mind you, was riding the white line of a lane in between cars. He was only giving himself a foot on either side as he went down through the traffic.  This is just downright dumb.  I hope he made it to work.  The chances are if he continues this activity, he is going to be involved in a bicycle accident. He will be injured and have problems for the rest of his life.

            2. Texting and driving.  I had someone pull over into my lane as she was texting and had no idea that it even happened.  Get off the phone and concentrate on driving.  It’s very simple to do and it will save your life as well as others’ lives.  Is it worth being in an accident because you need to text, “Oh my gosh” to your girlfriend in the next 13 seconds?

            3. Using Two Lanes to Make a Turn. Stay in your lane. Don’t make a right turn by initiating your turn toward the left.  Stay in your lane.  You don’t have to veer to the left and into the other lane in order to make a right-hand turn.  You can do it within the lanes.  That’s why the lines are there.

            4. Tailgaters.  Get off the rear end of my car.  You’re not going to get there any quicker because you’re 5 feet off my bumper.  Be three car lengths back.  There is a reason this is recommended.  You’re reaction time is not good enough if I have to slam on the brakes for a deer.  You’re going to cause an accident and you’re going to hurt my back.  Back off.

            5. Icy Road Speeders. When the roads get wet and snowy, slow down.  There’s no reason to go 75 miles an hour in a 45 mile per hour zone weaving in and out traffic.  I know 95 percent of the road is okay, but if you hit that one spot at the wrong time you’re going to lose control and cause a serious car wreck.  You don’t need to be in an accident this time of year and neither do I.  Slow down, drive smart, don’t be an idiot.

            These are just five of my grievances I have to voice against Louisville drivers. I have many others. These are just some of the poor driving skills I’ve seen in the last few weeks.  I know I’m somewhat making light of this, but my point is if you are careful you can save yourself from being in an accident. You don’t have to be injured.  Christmas is a great time of year.  Let’s all drive smart and take care of ourselves and take care of other drivers on the road so that we can eliminate bicycle accidents, car accidents and truck accidents.  Have a safe and happy Festivus and let’s hope that there are no grievances to air about Louisville drivers and Kentucky car accidents in the coming year.

It’s that time of the year.  It’s cold outside.  The Christmas decorations are everywhere.  We are all eagerly anticipating the Christmas holiday.  Children are awaiting the arrival of Santa Claus. Parents are heading to the stores trying to get that perfect gift. We have all seen “Jingle All the Way” with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sinbad and Phil Hartman, and unfortunately that is the way the holidays make a lot of people act. Another thing that comes with the holiday season is downright stupid driving. 

I was driving down US 42 on the way to work and a car swerved over into my lane and almost ran me off the road.  I looked over only to see a teenage girl, texting on her phone, totally unaware that she had almost caused an accident.  I honked at her, which I probably shouldn’t have done. I then gave her the universal signal for “What were you thinking?” (Both hands extended in the air) She looked over at me with a puzzled look on her face and then went straight back to texting and driving.  She is a ticking time bomb; eventually she will be involved in an automobile accident. I hope no one is seriously injured.

I know inattentive driving is not limited to Christmas time. But this close call made me think that we need to be much more aware of what is happening on our roads in Louisville, Kentucky, in order to avoid an automobile accident.   There are always people that are not thinking clearly while they are driving. They text, eat, read, put on make up, and on and on. Distracted drivers are dangerous. You have seen this as you drive down the road.  I saw a bicycle on the road in this cold weather without any reflectors and the rider was dressed totally in black and it was night and pitch black.  I hope he made it home.  It would be a minor miracle. 

As we get closer and closer to Christmas, tempers are going to flare as shoppers are trying to get to the malls. We will all rush out to get that last minute gift. I urge everyone to be  extra careful during this time.  Be a little more cautious.  Take a little more time.  Try not to be in a hurry.  I know that this is a hard task, but we need to look out for the other car. If you don’t you are risking being in a serious auto accident.  You need to expect the unexpected.  Just because you have a green light does not mean the other person will be paying attention.  Look as you go through to make sure that the other person sees the red light.  You need to have your escape route planned.  Don’t let a car wreck destroy your Christmas holiday.  Be aware that people are not paying as much attention. You must pay twice as much attention to have a safe and accident free holiday season.

I was driving my 16 year old daughter to school this morning.  She has her driver’s permit and is learning to drive and is very excited about it.  She told me that there was a program on Channel 1 at her high school here in Louisville that was preempted by the school.  For those of you that are not familiar with Channel 1, it is a national news program that is shown in high schools. My daughter’s school felt that the content was too graphic.  So what does a sixteen year old do if her school tells her she can’t watch a video because it is too graphic? She gets on the computer and performs a search on YouTube and was and finds the program. 

The preempted program is a community awareness ad from the United Kingdom depicting the dangers of text messaging and driving by teenagers.  I have to admit that it was very graphic.  It showed three teenage girls driving down the road while using a phone to send a text message to a friend.  They were driving and paying more attention to the phone then to the road. Their car went across the center line and struck another car head-on. The airbags deployed.  Heads hit the windshield. There was blood everywhere. As the car came to a stop it was T-boned by another car. One girl died in the lap of the driver. 

It went on to show the families in the other cars.  There was a toddler who kept asking; “Why won’t mommy and daddy wake up?” A child in a car seat was also shown motionless with eyes wide open, obviously dead.

Although it was quite graphic I disagree with the school’s decision to pull this informational video. Teenagers who are new drivers generally have no idea as to what the real dangers that driving a car entails and how text messaging behind the wheel can affect not only their life, but the lives of others.  I don’t believe that most teenagers have a true understanding of the real dangers of driving a car. My old boss at the Commonwealth attorney’s office, Ernie Jasmine used to refer to an automobile with a drunk driver behind the wheel as a 2-ton projectile with a license to kill.  I believe he would have referred to a driver who is texting in the same way. Teen drivers need to be shown that a car is a very dangerous weapon that can kill people and change their lives forever. 

Click here if you want to watch this video.  The video is graphic, but no more graphic than what we watch on the crime shows on television.  I believe all drivers should view this.  This type of public awareness ad could help make our Kentucky roads safer and help eliminate serious automobile accidents that occur almost every day due to driver inattention.

Kentucky is a PIP state for automobile accidents. PIP is short for Personal Injury Protection. You may also hear these benefits referred to as Basic Reparation Benefits or No-Fault Benefits. I am not going into great details hear as to how these benefits work. Here is the nut shell. You have $10,000.00 of benefits that will pay your first $10,000.00 of medical bills and or lost wages.

Those of you that know me have heard me say that this is simply not enough for most accidents. I urge everyone to I run into (just figuratively) to purchase additional benefits called Added Reparation Benefits. For a small increase in your premium you can dramatically increase the coverage that is available to you.

With all of the talk about health care reform I have been looking at what is going on north of the border in Canada. In Ontario government is making plans to reduce their medical rehabilitation benefit from $100,000.00 to $50,000.00 for non- catastrophically injured people.  This is part their no-fault benefits. While I am urging people to increase their benefits in Kentucky the Canadian government is forcing everyone to take a reduction in these benefits. This will significantly alter the quality of care victims of automobile accidents will receive.

Interestingly enough it will increase the attorney fee collected. I am sure that most Personal Injury lawyers in Ontario don’t care about this change because of this.

I ran across an interview done by Brenda Hollingsworth, an Ottawa personal injury attorney, which was a breath of fresh air. Brenda is speaking out against the decrease in medical rehabilitation benefits that will be available to seriously injured car accident victims starting in the summer of 2010. In the video, Brenda talked about how injured car accident victims will run out of their Ontario rehabilitation funds long before the ten-years they are supposed to last. The 50% reductions in benefits will have catastrophic affects on many families.  

Brenda believes this change will increase the number of lawsuits required because injured people will have to sue the drivers who hit them to ensure they can pay for physiotherapy, medication and other medical needs.

I salute Brenda for standing up for the victims of auto accidents. In Kentucky we already have a low amount of PIP benefits that is required. Do yourself a favor and call your insurance agent and raise your coverage today!

Last weekend I was helping the Bon Air Neighborhood Association plant trees along the Bardstown Road Corridor between the Showcase Cinema and Hikes Lane. The purpose of this project is to raise awareness of the perils of pedestrians and bicyclists as they travel Bardstown Road.  The tree planting was in memory of a friend of the Bon Air Neighborhood Association, Jen Futrell. Jen was riding her bicycle home from work last year when she was struck by a van and killed.

While I was digging holes and planting trees there was two automobile accidents that occurred within fifty yards of me.  The first accident was a rear-end collision.  A car did not stop and plowed into the back end of another car.  The front hood was crushed and the bumper was torn off the car that was hit.  It was a hard impact.  Other than looking over and watching the cars and the police arrive, I did not pay much attention to this accident.  Everything seemed to run its course.

After at-fault car in the first accident left the scene, he pulled to the left to make a left-hand turn. He was apparently reading something while driving (which goes to a completely different point) and rear-ended another car.  Yes you heard me right, the same car that was in the first accident had just been involved in a second accident within minutes of the police leaving the accident scene.  The damage to the car in the second accident was minimal.  The impact pushed the bumper in. It then popped back out. Only a slight crack that was visible.

What grabbed my attention in this accident is that the driver of the impact vehicle got out of his car and was very animated.  The woman from the car that had been hit also got out of her car. I heard the voices get louder and louder. He was begging her not to call the police, not to call the insurance company, as there was no damage to the car.  There was a young boy in the back seat so I decided to go over to make sure everybody was okay.  I immediately noticed that the woman was visibly upset. She wanted to call the police but was afraid to. She was being intimidated by the animations of the first man. I could tell that she was scared and didn’t know what to do.

This got me thinking that many, many people do not know what to do if they are in a Kentucky automobile accident.  I advised the woman to get back into her car so that she could sit with her son, calm him down and to call the police.  The driver of the car that hit her became angry with me for getting involved. This was an obvious clue he was up to no good.  I asked him to provide his insurance card so that they could exchange information. It was at that time I noticed that he had a no insurance citation, which was obviously from the first accident.  He did not have insurance and although this was a minor accident, I  know from my experience that minor accidents have the possibility of leading to serious injuries. The woman’s boyfriend showed up and I left because I felt things were under control.

Now for the reason I am telling you this story. When you are involved in an accident there are several things that you need to remember. Failure to take these steps may make it difficult to proceed with a claim at a later time.

• Stop! The law requires anyone to stop that has been involved in an accident.  If you do not stop, you could be charged with leaving the scene of the accident, which is a criminal charge.  If possible and the accident is minor always pull over to the road get out of traffic so that you are safe.

• You should always assist anybody that is injured and call 911.  Do not move anybody that is seriously injured.

• Everyone should always report the accident.  Call the police department.  This is something that this woman almost did not do.  If she woke up the next morning with neck or back pain, it would be much more difficult to file a claim and get a satisfactory settlement.

• You should always exchange information.  You want to make sure that the other driver has insurance.  Get his driver’s license number, his address, the vehicle license plate number, make, model, year and VIN number of the car.  Do not count on the other person to give this to you as they may not give you the correct information.

• No matter how minor the accident you should see a doctor and get checked out to make sure that there are no hidden injuries.  Many times, you are so upset from the accident your adrenaline is flowing that you do not know you are hurt.  Get checked out just to make sure.  Your PIP insurance will pay for this.

• Watch what you say.  Always tell the truth but do not be too quick to assume what happened.  Just tell the facts to the police.

• If you don’t know what your options are talk to a lawyer so that he/she can advise you.

I hope these tips help.  If you need any additional information I provide a free down loadable pamphlet on what to do if you are in an automobile accident.  Alternatively, you may email me at mike@mikeschaferlaw.com and I will mail you a copy of the pamphlet. I hope you are never in a car accident and have to use this information, but if you are you will now know what to do.

This past weekend I was invited to help plant trees along Bardstown Road between the Showcase Cinema and Hikes Lane.  This invitation was extended to me by Cindie Cook of the Bon Air Neighborhood Association.  For those of you who are not familiar with Cindie she was friends with Jen Futrell. Jen was the cyclist that was struck and killed by a van while riding her bike home from work down Bardstown Road on October 3, 2008.

This was a tragic accident that has brought attention and outrage to the plight of cyclists and pedestrians.

The Bon Air Neighborhood Association, as a group is a big part of an effort to make the Bardstown Road corridor a tree-lined boulevard that is both pedestrian and bicyclist friendly.  Cindie Cook believes this would encourage people to stop and shop.  Also, there is a hope that it would bring new business to the area, especially the now vacant Showcase Cinema buildings.

I believe an area that is active and as busy as Bardstown Road could be a much safer place for pedestrians and cyclists and especially those that live in the area.  As I was planting trees along Bardstown Road, the amount of traffic was unbelievable. Cars were buzzing by with very little break. I know it is hard to judge speeds as you are standing along the side of the road, but I would guess that many of these cars were speeding. During my three hours on Bardstown Road I saw two car accidents that occurred within 75 yards of where I was working. I also became oblivious to the horns that were honked almost continuously.

There was very little way for people in the neighborhoods along this stretch of Bardstown Road to walk to the mall, to restaurants or to even to cross the street.  My hope is that the efforts of Ms. Cook and the Bonaire Neighborhood Association will make this area safer, limiting automobile accidents, pedestrian accidents and bicycle accidents. 

I learned from Cindy that Kentucky is currently seventh in the nation in pedestrian and bicycle fatalities.  There were 32 cyclists and pedestrians killed in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky in 2008.  It is her hope that the tree plantings will add awareness to bikers and walkers, as well as being a tribute to her friend that was killed.  I applaud Cindy Cook for her focus on celebrating and memorializing the life of her friend and for trying to make the streets a safer place. I believe her efforts will save lives and prevent many serious accidents from occurring.

The City of Louisville has experienced bicycle accidents and pedestrian accidents that have resulted in deaths over the past year. These include the triathlete that was killed during an event at E.P.Sawyer State Park earlier this year as well as several young children who were hit while riding their bikes. All of these deaths are needless and my sympathy goes out to the families and friends. They do, however, help to show the need for more driver awareness of those they share the roads of Kentucky with. We need more Cindies in Louisville to help make our roads safer.