Street Racing Dangerous to All

From chariot races to The Fast and the Furious, the lure of besting another driver in a race has played out in movies and on the road for eons. But the ancient Romans have nothing on today’s street racers, who can hit 150 miles per hour if they disable speed limiters and make other tweaks to their tricked-out cars.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration states that speed-related crashes cost the country $40.4 billion dollars. In 2014, 28 percent of fatal crashes were speed related, and 9,262 people died. Another alarming statistic is that with males between the ages of fifteen and twenty, 36 percent of those who were in deadly accidents were speeding.

 

Open Roads

Whether street races are planned at night in industrial parks or a race happens spontaneously when two drivers catch each other’s eye, a thrill ride can easily turn deadly. When a car speeds, it needs increased braking distance and quicker driver reaction time.

Kinetic energy’s relationship between mass and velocity causes the severity of impact to be greater the faster a car is travelling. As with any type of speeding accident, multiple vehicles can be involved when they swerve into another lane and stop short to avoid the wreckage. And in the case of street races, unwilling bystanders can easily get hurt.

 

New York City Street-Racing Crash

According to the accounts of witnesses, this fatal accident on the Long Island Expressway in New York City may have been caused by two cars racing. Whether or not this is true, what proved fatal was the speed involved: A witness estimated the vehicles were travelling at 100 miles per hour.

After 4 a.m., two cars allegedly began racing in the midst of highway drivers, and one crashed into a median and broke in two. Another car hit some of the wreckage, and then a dump truck failed to stop quickly enough and plowed into five other cars that were stopped behind the tragic crash.

 

Rear-End Rights

Although the back driver in a rear-end collision is most often found responsible because they are required to leave enough room to respond to the actions of the driver in front of them, there are exceptions. If you crashed into someone because they were violating driving laws—such as by street racing—you have legal options.

If negligence can be proven, you may be eligible for a financial settlement to cover your injuries and damages. If the driver was speeding and endangering others, that is a reckless act, and you should not suffer for someone else’s selfishness and cheap thrills.

 

Experienced New York City Car Accident Attorneys

New York is a comparative negligence state, which means that percentages of fault can be assigned to more than one party. If you were involved in an accident with someone you believe was speeding or street racing, an experienced car accident attorney will know how to uncover evidence and build a case to present your side in the most convincing way possible. Depending on the conditions of your crash, you may be able to recover lost wages and get compensation for loss of quality of life and other damages.

Greenstein & Milbauer, LLP is here to help you through the difficult time after a car wreck and fight for your rights. Call 1-800-VICTIM2 (842-8462) toll free, and speak with us about what we can do for you. Alternatively, you can also reach us by completing the form at the bottom of this page. We have extensive experience litigating New York car accidents and battling insurance companies to get our clients what they deserve.

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