The Reason Foundation recently released its 24th Annual Highway Report, which measures the performance of state highway systems across the United States, relying on data provided by each state’s department of transportation. Florida occupied the 40th spot on the list.
This is just the most recent report to indicate failures in Florida’s highway system, mostly to do with safety. The state has long had a negative reputation for unsafe driving, and study after study continues to confirm this is a problem.
What the report says about Florida
Florida does perform well with the actual condition its roads. It scores very well in road and bridge maintenance, both in urban and rural areas. This is thanks in large part to the lack of freezing and thawing cycles that occur in many other states.
However, there are a lot of other areas where Florida ranks quite poorly.
It ranks 49th in overall expenditures per state-controlled lane-mile of highway, often spending three to five times as much as other states. It ranks 42nd in overall fatality rate on state highways, largely because it is one of the most tourist-packed states in the nation, featuring many foreign and otherwise unfamiliar drivers. Another factor is the number of elderly people who live in the state.
Experts say there’s not much Florida could do differently with regard to road construction or maintenance to improve road safety. While there is also a very high rate of pedestrian accidents (the state also ranks 40th in urban area congestion, a sure factor there), pedestrians are occasionally to blame for crossing in unsafe conditions.
So who is to blame for the highway safety conditions in the state? There’s no easy answer to that question, but it’s clear that more needs to be done to improve road safety in the state. For more information about steps to take if you’ve been injured in an accident, contact an experienced Bradenton, FL personal injury lawyer at Goldman, Babboni, Fernandez & Walsh.