10 Facts Employers Must Know About Motor Vehicle Crashes

For Any Organization with

Employees on the Roadway

1. In 2005, 43,443 people were killed and 2,699,000 were injured in 6,159,000 police-reported motor vehicle crashes. Daily that represents 17,000 reported crashes and 119 deaths.
2. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for all age groups from 3 to 33 years of age. Crashes are the 3rd leading cause of years of potential life lost for all ages combined.
3. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of occupational fatalities in the U.S.
4. A typical driver in the U.S. travels 12,000 to 15,000 miles annually and has a one in 15 chance of being involved in a motor vehicle collision each year. With most fleet drivers traveling 20,000 to 25,000 miles or more each year, they have a greater crash exposure.
5. The most dangerous part of the day for any employee is the time they spend in their vehicle with a crash occurring every 5 seconds, property damage occurring every 7 seconds, an injury occurring every 10 seconds, and a motor vehicle fatality occurring every 12 minutes.
6. Forty-one percent of the average vehicle miles traveled per household are from commuting to and from work (27%) and driving on work-related business (14%).
7. In 2000, the economic cost of crashes to employers was $60 billion resulting in 3 million lost workdays. Two-thirds of the cost ($40 billion) was from on-the-job crashes while one-third ($20 billion) was from off-the-job crashes for employees and their benefit-eligible dependents.
8. The average on-the-job crash costs an employer about $16,500 or just under $0.16 per mile driven. Crashes involving injuries cost substantially more — $504,408 for a fatal injury and $73,750 for a nonfatal injury.
9. With over 90 percent of motor vehicle crashes caused by human error, employers with high roadway exposure are at risk for a serious crash resulting in a lawsuit against their organization. Damages awarded to plaintiff’s making negligence claims against companies are at an all time high, settlements of $1 million or more are not unusual.
10. The development, implementation, enforcement, and monitoring of a strong driver safety program can protect an organization’s human and financial resources. Such a program allows an organization to be proactive in controlling crash risks and is the first line of defense against the potentially staggering costs from motor vehicle crashes involving employees.

NETS: 10 Facts Employers Must Know PDF Format

Drive Safely Work Week (October 3-7, 2011)

Getting There Safely is

Everyone's Business

Network of Employers for Traffic Safety

In partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation, we are grateful for your efforts to help combat the epidemic of distracted driving through your participation in this year’s campaign.

Whether we’re the driver, a passenger, a pedestrian or cyclist, there are things we can do in each role to help prevent distracted driving-related incidents. And for anyone willing to set the right example, the opportunities to be safe-driving role models for family and community members are limitless. That’s the premise of this year’s campaign materials and we’re confident you’ll find them to be informative, practical and useful.

The 2011 campaign is focused on the dangers of distracted driving— but not just from the position of the driver. The new materials also help consider the roles and responsibilities of being a safe passenger, pedestrian and cyclist in preventing distracted driving-related incidents. Download 2011 materials for free

Minnesota commuters spent 45 hours stuck in traffic in 2010

Fox 9 News
By Tim Blotz
September 27, 2011

If it seems like you are spending hours stuck in traffic -- it's because you are. A new nation-wide traffic congestion study conducted by the Texas Traffic Institute has found the traffic in Minnesota is among the worst in the nation.

The study raises the red flag on metros, such as the Twin Cities, and it comes with a warning: Do something now, or congestion will only skyrocket when the economy recovers and people go back to work.

Researchers collected vehicle speed data from GPS units and mobile devices across the nation and crowd-sourced the data. Using those tools, they determined that Minnesota commuters spent 45 hours stuck in traffic in 2010.

That number ranks the Twin Cities as the 10th worst metropolitan area in the country for traffic, though the metro is tied with Dallass-Fort Worth.

The study also found that congestion in Minnesota causes drivers to burn an extra 20 gallons of gas each year, which puts Minnesota at the 12th worst in the nation, according to the study.

Perhaps the bleakest number the study found is that the extra traffic time taps the pocketbook to the tune of $913 each year.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation was not surprised by those numbers and said -- in some ways -- they are encouraging because it mirrors their own data that shows congestion has dropped, especially in the past five years.

Still, there are not big enough budgets to build more lanes and more roads, so MnDOT is tackling the problem by making better use of the roads we already have. Continue Reading

 

The 2011 Urban Mobility Report, published by the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M University, illustrates congested conditions in 2010 on a number of levels:

• The amount of delay endured by the average commuter was 34 hours, up from 14 hours in 1982.
• The cost of congestion is more than $100 billion, nearly $750 for every commuter in the U.S.
• “Rush hour” is six hours of not rushing anywhere.
• Congestion is becoming a bigger problem outside of “rush hour,” with about 40 percent of the delay occurring in the mid-day and overnight hours, creating an increasingly serious problem for businesses that rely on efficient production and deliveries.

The economic recession has only provided a temporary respite from the growing congestion problem. When the economic growth returns, the average commuter is estimated to see an additional 3 hours of delay by 2015 and 7 hours by 2020. By 2015, the cost of gridlock will rise from $101 billion to $133 billion – more than $900 for every commuter, and the amount of wasted fuel will jump from 1.9 billion gallons to 2.5 billion gallons – enough to fill more than 275,000 gasoline tanker trucks.

Kudos to Nevada: Banning Cell Phone Use While Driving

Studies also show that driving while talking

on the phone causes the same impairment as someone

who is legally intoxicated....

RGJ.com
By Jaclyn O'Malley
September 26, 2011

While local cops say the upcoming cellphone ban that begins Jan. 1 will save lives and prevent serious injuries caused by distracted driving, they also worry that the state-imposed cramp in many drivers' style could lead to more accidents if they try to sneak calls on their laps or do email checks on handheld phones hidden on passenger seats.

But Sgt. Jim Stegmaier of the Reno police traffic unit said he is hoping the $50 price tag for first offenders, which rises to $250 for the third -- especially in this economy -- will keep motorists from discreetly trying to use their handheld phones.

"Without a doubt, cellphone usage is the No. 1 biggest factor in distracted driving. It's crazy," Stegmaier said. "It's impossible not to see motorists with their phones up to their ears or texting when they're driving down the street.

"We've seen vehicles leave their lane of travel multiple times just driving a block, which is of high concern for us," he said.

"It's going to be a hard habit to break for most people, especially the younger generation who has been texting and talking on their cellphones before they got a driver's license," Allen said. "Law enforcement also has a fear factor that drivers will try to become more stealthy in trying to read their emails or creating texts. They may try to keep their phones out of our sights by keeping them on their laps or on the center console in an effort to sneak a text. This could make the distraction more severe."

Nevada became the 34th state to ban cellphone use while driving because distracted driving deaths across the country were on the rise, said Nevada Department of Transportation spokeswoman Meg Ragonese. Continue Reading

Cell Phone and Texting Laws By State

Milwaukee and D.C. Taxi Drivers Seeking Their Day in Court

JSOnline
By Bruce Vielmetti
September 26, 2011

Three Milwaukee cab drivers, backed by a public interest law firm, say Milwaukee's limit on the number of taxicabs allowed in the city is arbitrary, anti-competitive and unconstitutional.

In a lawsuit expected to be filed Tuesday, they claim the 321 taxicab permits, capped in 1992, have consequently risen in value to nearly $150,000 on the secondary market, in effect pricing many would-be taxi entrepreneurs out of the market.

The Institute for Justice Minnesota Chapter, which represents the drivers, claims the numbers work out to one taxicab per 1,850 city residents, far fewer than many comparable cities. It cites ratios of one cab per 935 residents in Seattle, one per 550 in Minneapolis and one per 480 residents in Denver, where the institute successfully challenged limits on taxicab fleet size.
"Milwaukee's taxi permit cap presents a classic case of regulatory capture," the institute says in a news release. "The benefits of the system are concentrated in a few permit holders while the costs are diffused among consumers, drivers and would-be owners."

One of the biggest permit holders is Michael Sanfelippo, who controls 162 permits. He says that when Milwaukee had more permits, no one could make a decent living and the quality of cabs and service suffered.

"This is not a cab town," he said. Sanfelippo, who also operates American United, a dispatching service for cabs, scoffed at the notion that the permits would command $150,000.

"I think the last couple I bought were maybe $80,000," he said.

The lawsuit, which the institute intends to file in Milwaukee County Circuit Court, asks that a judge block the city from denying new taxicab permits, and award nominal damages of $1, plus the plaintiffs' attorney fees.

"In addition to the harm plaintiffs suffer, the artificial scarcity of cabs harms Milwaukee citizens and visitors through limiting competition in the taxicab industry and creating inferior customer service - including longer wait times for cabs and a lack of available cabs in modest and minority neighborhoods," the lawsuit asserts. Continue Reading


The Hoya
By Laura Zhang
September 27, 2011

Two D.C. taxi driver associations accused city officials of instituting unfair regulatory policies in a lawsuit filed last Tuesday.

In their complaint, the D.C. Professional Taxicab Drivers Association and the Dominion of Cab Drivers said that Mayor Vincent Gray's policies have caused arbitrary taxi rates, misrepresentation for drivers on the commission and unreasonable working hours.

They also alleged that Gray and D.C. Taxi Commission Chair Ron Linton denied their representatives a seat on the commission.

"The Mayor has refused to allow the commission to function, usurping its authority to set rates properly and instead setting them at levels that are completely arbitrary, contrary to law and deeply harmful to the men and women who operate taxicabs," the official complaint stated.
The mayor's office has expressed their disappointment with the lawsuit.

"The lawsuit … is disappointing and misguided. It ignores the commitment my administration has made to address the reasonable concerns of the taxicab industry while ensuring residents and visitors to our city get the first-class service they deserve," Gray said in press release last Friday.

The release also cited actions taken by the Gray administration to improve conditions for taxi drivers, including the institution of a fuel surcharge to help with higher gas prices.

Nathan Price, chairman and spokesperson of the DCPTDA, said that a legal battle with the D.C. government was inevitable, however.

"After several failed attempts to meet with the mayor in the last nine months, there was no other option but to file a lawsuit to remedy their economic hardship," Price said in an interview with The Hoya.

The taxi drivers' unions conflict with the D.C. government traces back to January 2006, when the unions were refused a pay increase. Continue Reading

Press Release: Atlas Announces Launch of New Claim Reporting Technology

CHICAGO, Sept. 27, 2011 /CNW/ - Atlas Financial Holdings, Inc. ("Atlas" or the "Company"; TSXV: AFH) announces the launch of a mobile enabled technology for claim reporting. This technology allows Atlas' commercial automobile policy holders to submit their first notice of claim to the Company from their taxi, limousine or paratransit vehicle with a variety of commonly used mobile devices. The mobile application utilizes Quick Response ("QR") code technology which allows policyholders to efficiently submit key information and photos from the scene of an accident.

Atlas is the first niche insurer in the Company's specialty commercial auto insurance space to introduce this type of innovative process. This new mobile enabled technology creates value for Atlas' customers through a more streamlined first notice process and simultaneously provides the Company with a greater level of information to facilitate Atlas' commitment to delivering timely and appropriate claim adjudication. The real time nature of this process also allows Atlas to provide its policyholders with guidance to assist them in the event of an accident while they are still on the scene.

About Atlas:

The primary business of Atlas is commercial automobile insurance in the United States, with a niche market orientation and focus on insurance for the "light" commercial automobile sector including taxi cabs, non-emergency paratransit, limousine/livery and business auto. The business of Atlas is carried on through its operating insurance subsidiaries American Country Insurance Company and American Service Insurance Company, Inc. Atlas' operating insurance subsidiaries have decades of experience with a commitment to always be an industry leader in these specialized areas of insurance.

Additional information about Atlas, including a copy of the Company's most recent financial statements and MD&A, can be accessed on the Canadian Securities Administrators' website at www.sedar.com or through the Company's website at www.atlas-fin.com.

WI Politicians Place 13,000 Transit Dependent Citizens in Harms Way

13,553 WI jobs could be thrown under the bus as the result

of recent transportation budget cuts. Maybe the WI "representatives"

with their $49,943 salary and $88 per diem will offer to car pool in

order for thousands of their constituents to get to work.

Journal Sentinel
By Larry Sandler
September 25, 2011

More than 13,000 jobs would be out of reach for Milwaukee County residents without cars, if county officials adopt recommended cuts in bus service, a new report warns.

If County Executive Chris Abele and the County Board slice the bus routes targeted in the Milwaukee County Transit System's 2012 budget request, at least 13,553 jobs would be inaccessible by public transit, according to an analysis of the service cuts by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's Center for Economic Development.

"One likely consequence of implementing the proposed service reductions for 2012 would be to make it difficult or impossible for transit-dependent workers and job-seekers in Milwaukee to reach many job locations in suburban Milwaukee County," wrote the study's author, Joel Rast, director of the center. "Given Milwaukee's already high poverty and jobless rates, especially for African-Americans, this scenario is particularly troublesome."

The study, released last week, drew concern from two county supervisors. The supervisors and Abele blamed Madison for the bus system's plight.

Following the recommendation of Gov. Scott Walker, the Legislature cut aid to transit systems statewide by 10% in the 2011-'13 state budget. That will be a $6.8 million cut for Milwaukee County next year, partly offset by $1.45 million in new aid for the Transit Plus service for disabled and elderly riders. Together with other revenue shortfalls and rising expenses, the transit system is facing a $15 million budget hole for 2012. Continue Reading