Welcome to Stop The Damage. Hosted by the Brain Injury Association of NJ.
A brain injury can happen to anyone at anytime. The damage can be long lasting…broken bones, cracked skulls, lives torn apart! Often it was from something that could have been prevented. Our goal is to stop the damage!
Recently, Jack Bulkley (@veloreviews) wrote a brief article outlining some of the findings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Traffic Safety Facts from 2009.
He wrote, “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Traffic Safety Facts 2009 divides traffic fatalities into three categories: occupants, motorcyclists, and non-occupants. For 2009 in the USA, 24,747 occupants were killed and over 2 million injured. For motorcyclists the number is 4,462 killed and 90,000 injured.
While the numbers show cars and motorcycles being much more of a danger to themselves and each other, there were also 4,872 non-occupants killed and 116,000 injured.
Cyclists made up 630 of the dead and 51,000 of the injured.
I don’t know what to say about these numbers. Certainly 30,000 families morning their dead seems a high cost. I did find that around 60% of the cycling incidents involve riding at night without lights. So just that one simple change greatly decreases your chance of being a number in a future report.”
Jack Bulkley writes on many different topics and all of his articles are a joy to read. Go get involved on his blogHERE.
On Friday, January 28, Road Warrior Columnist John Cichowski wrote a great article regarding the big news that teen driving deaths are down 44% in 2010 and that it could be “attributed to the May 1 teen driving restrictions that included an 11 p.m. curfew, passenger limits, a ban on hands-free cellphone use, and a tiny, mandated red bumper decal to identify novice drivers under the state’s Graduated Driver License law.”
WASHINGTON – U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood (@RayLaHood) today released the latest video in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) “Faces of Distracted Driving” series. The new video features the Brown family, whose 17-year-old daughter, Alex, was killed in a 2009 crash because she was texting while driving on a rural road in Wellman, Texas. The family recently appeared on ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, raising awareness of the Remember Alex Brown Foundation and the dangers of distracted driving.
“Alex Brown wasn’t a statistic – she was a beloved daughter and a sister, and her death left a hole in the heart of her family members and friends,” said Secretary LaHood. “I hope that everyone who hears the Brown family speak about their tragic loss will realize that no text message or phone call is worth the risk. Additional media attention, like ABC’s helping share the Browns’ story with the viewers of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, is also vital.”
“She’s a huge part of our lives that’s just gone,” said Jeanne Brown. “But maybe we can reach one young person or help keep someone else’s daughter from doing this.”
“Faces of Distracted Driving” is a video series exploring the tragic consequences of texting and cell phone use while driving. It features people from across the country who have been injured or lost loved ones in distracted driving crashes. In 2009, nearly 5,500 people died and half a million were injured in accidents involving a distracted driver. The series is part of Secretary LaHood’s effort to raise greater awareness about the dangers of distracted driving.
USDOT is also encouraging others who would like to share their distracted driving experiences to post videos on YouTube and email the links to: faces@distraction.gov.
The department’s campaign against distracted driving is a multi-modal effort that includes automobiles, trains, planes, and commercial vehicles.
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) issued a rule prohibiting rail employees from using cell phones or other electronic devices on the job following a September 2008 Metrolink crash in Chatsworth, California that killed 25 people.
After a Northwest flight crew distracted by a laptop overshot their destination by 150 miles, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) advised air carriers to create and enforce policies that limit distractions in the cockpit and keep pilots focused on transporting passengers safely.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued a rule prohibiting text messaging while operating a commercial motor vehicle in September 2010. In December 2010, FMCSA issued a proposal to restrict the use of cell phones by commercial drivers while operating. A rulemaking proposed by the a href=“http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/” target=“blank”>Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) in September 2010 to work in conjunction with the FMCSA ban would restrict the use of electronic devices by drivers during the operation of a motor vehicle containing hazardous materials. The public is invited to comment on the proposed rulemaking.
To learn more about USDOT’s efforts to stop distracted driving, please visit www.distraction.gov.
PLEASEWATCH&SHARE: the entire “Faces of Distracted Driving” series @ www.distraction.gov/faces.
“Distracted Driving Kills. Safe Driving Starts With YOU.”
The Remember Alex Brown Foundation (RAB) honors Alex’s memory by educating others about the dangers of texting while driving. Their website encourages others to share their distracted driving stories and pledge online not to text while operating a vehicle.
WALTHAM, MA – U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood (@RayLaHood) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator David Strickland (@NHTSAgov) today took a first look at new Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS) technology being developed to prevent alcohol-impaired drivers from operating their vehicles while under the influence.
Secretary LaHood and Administrator Strickland were joined by Shane Karr, vice president for Federal Government Affairs at the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, and Laura Dean Mooney (@maddnatlpres), national president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) (@maddonline), and JD Crouch, president of QinetiQ North America’s Technology Solutions Group (@QinetiQNorthAm) for a demonstration of DADSS technology at the QinetiQ lab where it is under development in Waltham, Massachusetts.
While still in the developmental stages, DADSS is seen as a potential tool for keeping drunk drivers from being able operate their car if their blood alcohol concentration is at or above the legal intoxication limit (.08 BAC or higher). The technology could be voluntarily installed as an option for new cars. One system under evaluation determines the blood alcohol concentration through a touch-based approach and another system uses a breath-based approach.
NHTSA research shows that drivers involved in fatal accidents with blood alcohol levels above the .08 legal limit are eight times more likely to have had a prior conviction for impaired driving than drivers who had no alcohol in their bodies at the time of a wreck.
“Drunk driving continues to be a national tragedy that needlessly claims the lives of thousands of people on our highways each year,” said Secretary LaHood. “We need to put an end to it.”
MADD President Laura Dean-Mooney, who was left a widow and single mother when a drunk driver killed her husband, Mike Dean, welcomed the progress of the DADSS research effort, saying, “Auto makers have stepped up to help turn cars into the cure. This project has made substantial progress and this technology could one day be an important step in our efforts to eliminate drunk driving.”
DADSS is being developed under a five-year, $10 million cooperative initiative between NHTSA and the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety (ACTS), an industry group representing most of the world’s auto makers.
“What we’re doing is developing technology that won’t interfere with sober drivers, will require virtually no maintenance or upkeep and will have such precision that it only stops a driver when their blood alcohol content is .08 BAC or higher, which is the illegal limit for drunk driving in every state,” said Shane Karr. “Now that we have actual prototypes, a tremendous feat in itself, we’ll be working to identify the gaps in performance between these prototypes and the precise standards we’ve identified as true technology requirements. This will point the way forward for the next phase of research.”
“The technology we are seeing here today could quite simply signal a new frontier in the fight against drunk driving,” said NHTSA Administrator Strickland.
The next stage of development, which would include practical demonstrations of one or more of the alcohol detection technologies, could begin later this year.
“Whatever the future holds for these advanced drunk driving prevention technologies, one thing remains clear; no technology can, or should, ever replace a driver’s personal responsibility not to drive drunk,” the Administrator said.
In 2009, 10,839 people died nationwide in crashes involving a drunk driver. These deaths make up 32 percent of all fatal crashes.
New Jersey’s driver safety laws make the Garden State one of the safest in the nation for motorists, a report released today finds.
The state ranks second only to the District of Columbia, according to the highway safety report released by Advocates for Auto and Highway Safety.
New Jersey had 583 fatalities related to auto accidents in 2009, and crashes cost the state $9.3 billion.
The states were ranked on laws addressing seat belts and other protection for adults, distracted driving/text messaging, impaired driving, teen driving, and child protection laws.
New Jersey met almost every requirement, except a law requiring 30–50 hours of supervised
driving for teenagers.
The state got half credit for the requirement that teenage drivers be prohibited from driving from at least 10 p.m to 5 a.m., and half credit for not requiring an ignition interlock for all drunken driving offenders.
New Jersey is one of the highest-spending states when it comes to the financial burden of car crashes, the report found. In New Jersey, $9.3 billion goes toward the economic cost of vehicle crashes. Only Florida, California, New York and Texas spend more.
Nationwide, more than 33,800 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2009, the report found, and more than 2.2 million people were injured.
Eleven percent of drivers involved in fatal crashes during the same time were teen drivers
between 15 and 20.
The report also found auto accidents significantly decrease during economic recessions.
Last week, while I was driving early on a rainy morning, a deer jumped out in front of my car. Without thinking, I slammed on my brakes, skidded on the slick roadway and prayed that the driver in the car behind me would not hit me! Unfortunately, this is an all too common occurrence and almost every driver has their own hair-razing story about near misses or colliding with animals as they dart in front of our cars.
With the days getting shorter, and the white-tail deer entering their mating season, officials with the Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Fish and Wildlife are cautioning drivers to be especially alert while driving to avoid collisions with the animals.
While deer may cross roads at any time, they are most active during the dawn and dusk hours. Once daylight-saving time ends, many of us are commuting during peak deer activity. Deer are unpredictable. They typically move in family groups and cross single-file. In many instances, deer will wander closer to roads and may stop in the middle of a road, cross over and then re-cross. If you spot a deer, slow down and pay attention to sudden movement. If the deer doesn’t move, don’t go around it. Wait until the road is clear. And, if you spot one deer, be alert for others.
If you are traveling after dark, use high beams where there is no on-coming traffic. High beams will illuminate the eyes of the deer near the roads and provide you with more time to react.
Most of us can’t stand the thought of hitting an animal, but it is important to know that you shouldn’t swerve to avoid impact with a deer. Brake firmly, but stay in your lane. You are more likely to be killed or injured when you swerve to avoid a deer and instead collide with oncoming traffic or obstacles on the side of the road.
For more information about deer in New Jersey, visit the DEP’s Fish and Wildlife Web site: www.njfishandwildlife.com
National Teen Driver Safety Week is October 17–24
Everyone knows that young people are the future of the Nation, but
it’s becoming increasingly clear that the future of young people on the
Nation’s highways isn’t quite so rosy. This is particularly true with
the growth in popularity of all manner of electronic devices that are
vying for the attention of young drivers over the act of driving itself.
First, the bad news: According to the U. S Department of
Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),
in 2008, more than 3,750 teens ages 15 through 19 died in automobile
crashes of all types, and almost 660, or 18 percent, of those were
killed in crashes involving some form of distracted driving.
All told, 4,457 teen drivers ages 15 to 19 were involved in fatal
crashes in 2008, and 16 percent (692) were distracted at the time of the
crash.
And while distracted driving comes in many forms, from texting and
talking on a cell phone, to eating and playing with a radio, CD player,
or MP3 device, all too often the result is tragic. In 2008, that
tragedy was played out nearly 800 times on America’s highways—that’s the
number of people killed in crashes that involved a distracted teen
driver.
While no one is exempt from driving distractions offered by the
electronic gizmos they are bringing with them into their vehicles, teens
seem to be particularly susceptible to the siren call of texting.
A study by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project
reported that nearly half of the teens interviewed reported that they
had been in a vehicle while the driver texted. All told, one in three
teens told Pew researchers that they had texted while driving.
Now for the good news: Overall, teen driving deaths and involvement in
fatal crashes have been declining over the last decade. In 2008,
according to figures from NHTSA, 15– to 20-year-old drivers involved in
fatal crashes dropped 27 percent compared to 1998. Driver fatalities
for this age group also dropped by 20 percent over the same 10-year
period.
While it is impossible to pinpoint a single reason for these declines,
youth driving programs like Graduated Driver Licensing are certainly
having a profound and positive effect on saving young lives on the
highways. Also, NHTSA anticipates that anti-texting laws and strong
police enforcement may also contribute to helping save teen lives. In
the first six months of 2010, no fewer than 30 States have passed
legislation outlawing texting while driving.
In addition, awareness programs like National Teen Driver Safety Week
are helping to educate both parents and teens alike about this important
safety issue nationwide. This year, National Teen Driver Safety Week is
October 17–24.
For more information about teen driving safety, please visit
www.ugotbrains.com and www.njteendriving.com
A husband and wife were arrested Sunday and charged with driving while intoxicated after the vehicle their child in was stopped at a checkpoint, East Fishkill Police said.
Officers at a checkpoint operated between midnight and 5 a.m. Sunday stopped a vehicle after observing marijuana paraphenalia inside, police said. The vehicle was occupied by two 18-year-old boys and two 15-year-old girls, all of whom live in Hopewell Junction
Parents of all four teens were called to pick up their children, but the 46-year-old mother of one of them was observed to be intoxicated upon her arrival, police said. The 46-year-old was arrested and the teen-ager was released to another adult at the scene, police said.
Two hours later, the same child’s father, a 45-year-old Hopewell Junction resident, drove through the checkpoint and was observed to be intoxicated, police said.
He was arrested and both parents were charged with driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor, police said.
Christopher Erd walked to school in Cresskill as a boy. Kerry Useche did as well, in New Providence.
Yet both Branchburg parents are adamant their own children won’t do the same now their school district has cut so-called “courtesy” busing.
Christopher Erd’s two children Wesley, 9, left, and Jennie, 7, don’t have a school bus to ride to their elementary school in Branchburg. The family falls within the two mile limit for the town’s courtesy busing, but the part of the route the children must take has no sidewalks and is very narrow and curvy.
It’s simply too dangerous, they say. Useche’s third-grader would have to cross Route 202 without the aid of a crossing guard — the town won’t add one. Erd’s 7– and 9-year-old would have to walk down a narrow country road with no shoulders.
Across the state, dozens of districts are scrambling to tackle safety and money issues raised when they cut courtesy busing after last spring’s abrupt drop in state aid.
In some districts, busing was simply eliminated for elementary and middle students who live within two miles of school and high-school students who live within 2.5 miles. (Those who live farther away must be bused.) In other districts, parents within that radius can buy a seat at prices ranging from $200 to $750 a year.
If this conjures up notions of children happily walking to school, think again: Officials expect most of the kids who lost free busing will be chauffeured by parents or carpools. That has them worried about traffic at school: Fully half of students struck by a car near school were hit by a parent driving another child, according to the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration.
PREVIOUSCOVERAGE:
• Interim superintendents manage budget crises in brief tenures at N.J. schools
• Sixty-one N.J.-funded special ed officials’ salaries exceed proposed $175K cap
• N.J. school districts avoid cuts in special education in budget crisis
• N.J. Senate approves school districts wage freeze, use of saved funds to avoid layoffs
• N.J. Senate approves interdistrict school choice program
• N.J. Gov. Chris Christie’s budget follows five administrations of increased spending
• N.J. bill would require parents to pay for students to attend summer school
• N.J. officials cut $140M in additional funds from school budgets
Charging parents for a service the entire community used to fund is a sign of the times, says Boonton Township Superintendent Roseann Humphrey. When her district proposed a similar cut in busing about six years ago, everyone — parents and retirees alike — objected. “There are no sidewalks, there are no streetlights, so it’s really hazardous. It’s unwalkable,” she said.
Yet this year, when the $180,000 busing tab was put on the ballot, it lost by two votes.
“It must be the economy,” she said. “Nowadays, they’re not so generous, whereas in the past, they’d say, ‘Let’s share the cost and keep everyone safe.’”
Since courtesy busing isn’t mandatory, it was an obvious place to shave costs. Districts have opted to make cutbacks in different ways.
In Sparta, consolidating bus routes meant giving the middle and high schools the same start times. Only a fifth of the 800 students who lost free busing have purchased a “subscription” bus seat at a price of about $500, said Warren Ceurvels, assistant superintendent for business. No crossing guards will be added, he said, noting the township has its own budget problems.
“I’ve had parents say, ‘I’m holding you responsible for my kid’s safety if anything happens to him.’ Well, no. It’s the parent’s responsibility to get the kid to school,” he said. “What’s been a courtesy before, the school district can no longer afford.”
Livingston is charging $750 per student, but families can select morning– or afternoon-only trips for $375.
Branchburg parents were facing a $500 fee per child until the township committee hired five bus drivers at a lower salary with no health benefits. That move reduces the fee to $125 for the first half of the school year, with a family cap of $200.
“For many people, $500 would be a monster tax increase. Let’s call it what it is,” said Greg Bonin, township administrator. The innovative arrangement gives the school some breathing room to renegotiate driver salaries and district health insurance costs.
It also gives added urgency to the town’s plan to connect major housing developments with sidewalks. “Right now, Branchburg’s not a walkable community,” Bonin said.
At West Morris Regional High School District, only 10 percent of students have signed up for $610 bus seats. That may mean traffic lines at school. “We’re not sure what’s going to happen, said Anthony DiBattista, superintendent. “It’s uncharted territory.”
Neighboring Mount Olive is offering $200 courtesy busing, with slightly more than half of the impacted families opting to pay, said Superintendent Larrie Reynolds.
At Boonton Township’s elementary school, children who ride the bus will be dismissed first, while the kids who were driven will wait in their classrooms. That gives time for the buses to depart to make way for all the cars. All students will have to get in and out of cars on the passenger side only for safety’s sake.
Despite all the cutbacks, educators expect few children will end up walking to school.
Stony Brook Road in Branchburg is a narrow, winding road and has sidewalks only part of the way. Christopher Erd’s two children Wesley, age 9, and Jennie, age 7, will have to walk this road to the elementary school because they no longer qualify for courtesy busing.
All those foggy memories — and jokes — about parents who walked three miles in the snow to get to school contain a grain of truth: In 1969, 42 percent of children walked or biked to school, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By 2001, that had dropped to 16 percent.
Those who walked to school know it offers children a rare slice of unsupervised freedom. As chronicled by Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn to “The Karate Kid,” it can bring adventure, romance, or perhaps a bully.
“There’s so much fun on the way to school, ” said Lenore Skenazy, author of “Free-Range Kids: How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children (Without Going Nuts with Worry.)” “There are sights, sounds and smells.” You could find an acorn, teach yourself to whistle, meet a friend. “It’s not the back of the car, for God’s sake.”
Yet even she votes thumbs-down to walking where the route simply isn’t safe.
“These are suburbs that were built without a thought of any human being traveling in anything besides a car,” she said.
Newer developments were constructed without sidewalks — whether to save money, or to adhere to a faux-rural aesthetic. In addition, newer schools are often built on the outskirts of town, instead of a central location, making walking even more problematic.
In many cases, subscription busing fees come atop other new fees — the “pay-to-play” charges for everything from the football team to the marching band to the spring musical. Schools can’t allow parents to pay bus fees in installments, either; they bid busing contracts and need the money upfront.
Families with incomes low enough to qualify for reduced or free school lunches cannot be charged for subscription busing where it is offered.
That doesn’t solve the problem for everybody, though.
Kerry Useche’s husband lost his contract job as a mail carrier, and is being redeployed to Afghanistan as a member of the Air Force in January. Money is tight. Her third-grader’s 1.79-mile route to school would include incomplete sidewalks, a road used as a shortcut by Pennsylvania commuters, and Route 202.
Yet when she complained that the township wasn’t providing a safe passage to school, as they were obliged to by law, she said the answer was, “Yeah, we are. Pay for it.”
