Every year, the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety evaluates each state based on its enforcement — or lack thereof — of the 15 safety laws it believes are most basic and important.
In the latest evaluation, Delaware was ranked as one of the highest-achieving states in the nation for enforcing 12 out of the 15 optimal laws. There were 11 states total that were ranked highest for their highway safety laws, and no state was recognized for enforcing more than 12 laws.
However, the state still has room for improvement. An Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety spokeswoman said that the state could improve highway safety further by adopting the three remaining optimal laws, which include an all-rider motorcycle helmet law, an open container law and a graduated licensing program for teen drivers.
The spokeswoman said the state should work to implement the all-rider motorcycle helmet law, especially, since “it would do a lot to protect a rider from death and serious head injury.” Additionally, surrounding states, like New Jersey, have already implemented such laws.
The state’s Office of Highway Safety reported that there were 15 motorcycle-related deaths in 2014. Although it wasn’t reported whether or not the victims involved had been wearing helmets, it is safe to say that wearing a helmet can greatly reduce a motorcycle accident victim’s chances of being catastrophically injured or killed.
Even though the state has made progress in recent years at enforcing important highway safety laws, highway fatalities still increased between 2013 and 2014 by 20 percent, Delaware Public Media reported. Almost half of those deaths were related to drunk driving, which suggests that the state’s impaired driving laws may also need improvement.
Following a serious accident, victims and their family members often don’t know where to turn. Our firm is there to support and fight for the rights of victims of motor vehicle accidents, including motorcycle accidents, drunk driving accidents and fatal car wrecks.
