A new study ranks the District of Columbia as having some of the best traffic safety laws in the country.
Everyone knows that D.C. traffic is horrendous. Before moving to the area, I didn't think it was possible to spend the better part of an hour just to move a mile or two (which is one of the reasons I don't drive to Fredericksburg that often). But what is actually a bit of good news is that the Washington, D.C., metro area apparently ranks at the top when it comes to traffic safety laws. Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety released its 2018 Roadmap of State Highway Safety Laws and listed Washington, D.C., as having one of the six best highway safety laws. When I first saw this headline, I let out a laugh. Of course, driving in the District is relatively safe. It's hard to crash when you're stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic. But my snarkiness not withstanding, D.C. itself is one of six states to have a green rating from the organization. For their analysis, the organization looked at Motorcycle helmet laws and primary enforcement of front-seat and back-seat seatbelt laws. The District of Columbia has all three of these on the books, awarding them a green rating. Only California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oregon, and Washington State also have these three laws on the books.
Diving into the study a bit more, however, revealed something really glaring. The study looks at traffic fatalities and, based on the laws on the books, determines whether lives could have been saved with 100 percent seatbelt law adherence. The organization estimates that Florida's safety laws saved 1,038 motorists' lives, but the state could have had 178 fewer traffic fatalities in 2016 with 100 percent seatbelt law adherence. They estimate that D.C.'s traffic safety laws saved one life in 2016, but do not believe that additional laws could have saved anyone else.
It is important to note that this study looked at D.C. as a standalone entity, not the entire D.C. metro area. Maryland and Virginia scored yellow and red, respectively, for their highway safety laws. Virginia does not have primary enforcement of seatbelt laws (front or back) and Maryland does not have a primary enforcement law for passengers in the backseat. If the study had looked at the entire D.C. metro area, the District would not have scored as well. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released data showing that more than 1,200 people died in traffic accidents in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia in 2016.
Other than the area's seatbelt and helmet laws, there are other traffic safety laws that would have put the DMV farther down in the rankings. For example, it is technically legal to have an open container of alcohol in the car in Virginia, though possession does create the presumption that the driver has been drinking. However, if the driver hasn't been drinking, there is no state law banning open containers on the roads in Virginia. The Commonwealth also was docked points for its weak teen driving requirements and weak child booster seat laws.
The study found that Rhode Island had the best combination of traffic safety laws on the books, while North Dakota scored dead last in the nationwide rankings.
Let us know: Do you feel safe on the roads driving in D.C.? Tell us in the comment section below!
