Every holiday season, drivers hit the roads in search of the perfect gift or friendly social occasions.
Every year, motorists ignore icy conditions, have too much to drink, and get so distracted by the stress of the pending holidays that they fail to take basic safety precautions whilst behind the wheel.
The holiday season is a time for giving and good cheer; injuring another motorist is not conducive to the holiday spirit.
Fortunately, statistical information available about auto accidents can help motorists know how to stay vigilant during this distracting season.
How Accidents Occur During the Holidays Accidents during the holidays occur in a manner similar to any other type of accident, although holiday drivers must contend with certain aggravating factors.
Drivers in winter must deal with snow, ice, freezing temperatures, fogged windows, reduced visibility, and other incompetent motorists.
Too many motorists will drive too fast for conditions, devote too little attention to the road, or climb behind the wheel while intoxicated.
Many Miami car accidents for instance, follow a consistent theme: the driver could or would not react to changing road conditions quickly enough.
There are many factors that go into these accidents, few of which can be blamed directly for causing a sudden spike in automobile accidents.
What The Statistics Reveal The holidays are statistically overrepresented in accident statistics.
In 2009, 10 percent of the fatal accidents that occurred on American roadways in that year occurred over only three percent of the year.
A report from Kentucky indicated that 48 of 729 fatal accidents on its roads in 1999 occurred over just six holidays; just under half of those were alcohol related.
In any given year, roughly 32 percent of fatal collisions will be alcohol-involved.
The spike in traffic accidents can be explained by the additional traffic caused by holiday shoppers and travelers, but the alcohol-related deaths cannot.
While numbers can fluctuate slightly in given years, impaired motorists are always a significant cause of holiday accidents.
The Effect of Awareness Programs on Hazardous Motorists Public awareness campaigns are a popular way to plead with the public to act responsibly during an increase in certain types of activities.
Campaigns against drunk driving are particularly common.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving runs an annual campaign called "Tie One on For Safety," in which the organization hands out ribbons to various individuals to remind them to drive sober.
The Texas Department of Transportation runs its "Don't Drink and Drive" campaign in conjunction with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which consists of a large number of radio, television, internet, point-of-sale, and billboard advertisements encouraging motorists to remain sober or find a driver who is not intoxicated.
Tracking the successes or failures of such campaigns is difficult.
Determining that narrow band of motorists who would have driven intoxicated but for the presence of the advertisement is difficult.
The Texas Department of Transportation campaign uses a Driver Awareness and Attitudes survey to assess driver attitudes towards drinking and driving.
Three in four respondents to a Texas Transportation Institute survey indicated that they had seen such campaigns within the last 30 days.
The survey also indicated that motorists are more likely to avoid driving while intoxicated while the campaigns are in effect.
The consistent theme operating throughout available holiday driving statistics is that drinking and driving will not make for a jovial holiday.
New Year's Day is the most dangerous day to drive, as it combines intoxicated and hung over motorists with a mass movement of holiday traffic as travelers return to their homes and places of employment.
When driving this holiday season, remain sober and remember to give the motorists nearby extra space.
They might need it.