Over the last decade, the Ontario Provincial Government has been one of the leaders in North America to take measures to reduce the amount of motor vehicle accidents on our roadways. Despite a plethora of measures to make the roadways safer, including making it harder to receive a driver’s license, driver error continues to be the leading cause of motor vehicle accidents. Today we’ll examine why driver error takes place, and steps that can be taken in order to prevent it.
There are 10 main factors that are credited with contributing to motor vehicle accidents, as a result of poor road design. These 10 factors are: banking/camber, barriers, entry and exit ramps, road markings, surface, shoulder design, signage, traffic control devices, traffic flow patterns and visibility. For all intents and purposes, banking occurs when a road is curved, and the curve is too high for the specific area. Since the curve is too high, the motorist can be at risk of losing control over their vehicle, because the curve is too difficult to manage. Barriers are used to distinguish between on coming and flowing traffic.
Under tort law, which is used to govern civil disputes, such as compensation claims for accidents, the victim and their attorney must prove the defendant was negligent, while disproving their own negligence. Within tort law, negligence is defined as occurring when one person’s actions or lack of actions leads to the injuries or damaged property of another person. The four steps to proving negligence are duty of care, failure of care, cause and damages. In order to prove your own innocence, and the guilt of someone else, you have to indicate each stage of negligence. Theoretically, if you can prove that someone owed you a duty of care and failed to live up to that duty of care, cause and damages become much easier to prove in a court of law.
For example, if a collision happens on an entry or exit ramp, the first thing your attorney will look at, is whether or not the city clearly marked which lanes were designated for entry and exit ramps on and off the highway. Sometimes poor weather conditions make it difficult for the road markings to be seen. However, if you can’t see the road markings on a clear day, your attorney may be able to file a claim on your behalf for compensation from the city.
Signage and traffic control devices, also affect the flow patterns and visibility when it comes to road design claims. Basically, signage and traffic control devices are used to explain to drivers where there may be issues on the road. For example, on the highway, signs are used to state if traffic is moving slowly or if there is an accident. If you get into an accident, with the help of your car accident lawyer, you may be able to show in your claim that the signage didn’t give you a warning that your vehicle would become at risk from the other traffic issues.