Crashes can happen on any street or highway. However, some roads are particularly hazardous. And when accidents occur on them, determining who is liable can be more complicated than people might expect.
Conditions that make a road dangerous
Roads can be unsafe in a few different ways.
Poor design
Road design is crucial to its safety, and there are several critical design elements designers consider. These elements include:
- Lane width
- Speed limits
- Use of bicycle lanes
- Elevation
- Curve radius
- Pedestrian facilities
- Stopping sight distance
If these road elements are improper or missing, or if they do not meet state or federal standards, a road may be dangerous in its design.
Poor maintenance
General wear and tear is unavoidable on roads and highways; billions of tax dollars go toward building and maintaining them. However, maintenance does not always happen as it should. Thus, roads could have:
- Potholes
- Unsafe surfaces
- Missing lane markers
- Incorrect signage
- Large obstacles
- Uncleared ice or snow
When parties do not maintain roads, they increase the potential for a crash to occur.
Missing safety elements
Roads that do not have proper safety equipment can endanger all road users. Dangerous roads may not have adequate:
- Barriers
- Guardrails
- Traffic signs
- Signals
- Crosswalks
If these elements are broken or missing, an accident can occur.
So, who is responsible for a crash?
Multiple parties could be liable when a crash occurs on a dangerous road.
Other motorists could very well be responsible for a crash if they were negligent or reckless. Speeding, being drunk or driving too aggressively are all actions that could make an individual liable for an accident.
However, government agencies could also be responsible for a crash if they were negligent in designing, building or maintaining a road, creating a dangerous situation for victims.
Identifying all parties responsible for a crash can maximize the compensation a victim could be eligible to receive and call attention to hazardous roads and conditions.
