5.0 out of 5.0 on co distracted driving crashes
Running Red Lights Can Cause Serious Injuries and Deaths
While most Colorado drivers know that running a red light can cause serious injuries or even death, many don’t realize just how pervasive the problem is. And while many Colorado communities have begun to address the problem with red light cameras and other tools, drivers who run red lights continue to pose a risk.
According to research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), 673 people lost their lives in 2010 and about 122,000 were injured in crashes caused by a driver who ran a red light. In context, this means a driver runs a red light in the U.S. about once every twenty minutes. About 39 percent of all red light runners cause a crash that leaves someone injured or killed.
About half of those who are injured or killed in red light running accidents are pedestrians, bicyclists, and passengers – not drivers. Meanwhile, drivers who run red lights are more likely to be younger, to not use their seat belts regularly, and to have poorer driving records than other drivers – including multiple speeding convictions.
