One simple driving change could cut your risk of a summer crash
(Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
New research suggests that banning left turns at intersections may help reduce crashes as more drivers hit the road this summer.
Why you should care:
According to Deloitte, more Americans are traveling more this summer season compared to last year, with more opting for road trips.
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But researchers said banning left-hand turns at some intersections can reduce the chances of crashes.
What they're saying:
"If you look at sort of the traffic patterns throughout the year ,the summer months, we have the most vehicle miles traveled. And with that additional vehicle miles traveled, there come more crashes, more fatalities, more serious injuries," Vikash Gayah, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Penn State told FOX News.
"So the idea that we have is to, uh, eliminate left turns in downtown streets, particularly downtowns with sort of, like, a grid like pattern," he added.
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By the numbers:
Gayah said about 61% of crashes at intersections involved a left turn.
"The reason that the left turns are so dangerous is that you have, a vehicle that's turning in, in front of the path of oncoming traffic.... where the driver of the left turning vehicle has to judge when there's a sizable gap in order to make that left turn. If they misjudge that, they get hit by that oncoming traffic or hit the oncoming traffic," he explained.
What you can do:
Researchers said avoiding left turns in urban areas may cause you to travel an extra block to reach your destination, but it doesn't always add travel time.
"By simplifying the signal timing at the intersection you're going to, you're going to travel through more intersections, one more intersection on average, but you're going to spend less time stopped at each intersection. And that has huge advantages, because it means that you'll actually get to where you want to go faster," Gayah said.
The Source: The information in this story comes from a FOX News interview with Vikash Gayah, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Penn State, who shared findings from his research on traffic safety. Additional context on increased summer travel was provided by data from Deloitte. This story was reported from Los Angeles.