Cincinnati Personal Injury Law Blog

Many ridesharing drivers in Ohio choose to work during extended periods of wakefulness. However, sleep deprivation can affect one's circadian rhythm and make the early mornings and late nights an especially dangerous time for driving. Unfortunately, ridesharing drivers can feel compelled by salary incentives to underrate sleep and keep working.

According to AAA estimates, roughly 328,000 crashes every year involve at least one drowsy driver. Of these, 109,000 result in injuries and 6,400 in death. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine called fatigued driving in the ridesharing industry a public safety risk.

Ohio residents spend a good portion of their lives on or near streets and highways. Motor vehicles have become the standard mode of transportation in the United States, and it is difficult to completely avoid interacting with them either as a driver, passenger, cyclist or pedestrian.

One significant concern for many people is that of car accidents. In fact, according to the World Health Organization, traffic accidents are the eighth leading cause of death worldwide. While much has been done in the U.S. and other countries to improve road safety, including strict penalties on driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, involvement in a car accident is still a major risk.

If any Ohio drivers wonder if those fancy automatic emergency braking systems actually work, the answer is an emphatic yes, according to a new study. The study was conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and focused on General Motors vehicles.

Automatic emergency braking, or AEB, systems use sensors to predict impending front-end collisions and alert the driver. If the driver fails to respond, the system can automatically apply the brakes to avoid the collision. The purpose of the study was to determine how well AEB systems work at preventing rear-end striking crashes in real-world conditions. To find out, IIHS researchers asked GM to provide VIN numbers for 2013-2015 models of Buicks, Cadillacs and Chevrolets to cross-reference with police-reported accident data. During those model years, GM made AEB systems optional, so the researchers were able to compare the accident frequency of models both with and without the system.

According to the National Safety Council, there are 23 possible factors in car crashes that police officers must be able to report on. However, all 50 states and Washington, D.C., fail to include fields or codes for reporting all of these critical factors. This is the conclusion of a report entitled, "Undercounted is Underinvested: How Incomplete Crash Reports Impact Efforts to Save Lives." Ohio residents may want to know the details.

Zero states have fields or codes for reporting the level of fatigue that drivers were experiencing at the time of a crash. Police in zero states are able to report on the use of driver assistance technologies, and only three states provide for the reporting of infotainment system use. Few states have fields for common offenses like texting and hands-free cell phone use.