St. Louis, MO (PRWEB) June 02, 2012
St. Louis motorcycle accident attorney Zane T. Cagle said today that raising awareness through accountability for drivers' behavior is the proper way to increase motorcycle safety and reduce motorcyclist traffic deaths in Missouri and elsewhere.
Cagle spoke in reaction to a Governor's Highway Safety Association (GHSA) finding that no progress was made in reducing motorcyclist deaths in 2011 despite the overall decline in motor vehicle fatalities during the same time period.
"We're disappointed by the finding that there's been no decrease in fatal motorcycle accidents while fatalities in automobile accidents have declined," said Cagle of the St. Louis personal injury firm, The Cagle Law Firm, which assists motorcycle accident victims in eastern Missouri and southern Illinois.
"The key to fewer fatal motorcycle accidents in Missouri and Illinois is educating car and truck drivers about the rights of motorcyclists to use the roads, and then holding them accountable when they violate these rights," Cagle said.
The GHSA said that preliminary numbers from each state and the District of Columbia indicate that motorcycle fatalities remained at about 4,500 in 2011, which was the same level as 2010.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says that, after declining in 2009 for the first time in 12 years, traffic accidents resulting in motorcyclist deaths increased slightly in 2010 to 4,502.
Motorcycle accidents accounted for 14 percent of total traffic accident fatalities across the country in 2010.
The GHSA speculates that more people bought motorcycles as the economy improved in 2011 and 2012, and that higher gas prices drove owners to ride motorcycles more often.
Cagle, whose firm investigates motorcycle accidents in preparation of personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits on behalf of clients, says drivers of cars and trucks are often found to be at fault in collisions with motorcyclists.
"Motorists need to understand that they must look for motorcycles whenever they start to change lanes or merge into traffic," Cagle said. "Cars and trucks should steer clear of motorcycles as much as possible. And drivers should never share a lane side-by-side with a motorcycle or follow them too closely."
"Motorcycles stop quickly because of their size, and they may change lanes abruptly because of the mechanics of driving a vehicle that's vulnerable to drafts from larger vehicles and can be wrecked by even the smallest roadway debris or potholes."
Cagle added that when another driver's negligence or recklessness contributes to a motorcycle rider's death in an accident, the motorcyclist's family has a right to seek compensation for their losses.
"When a driver fails in their duty to operate their vehicle safely around a motorcyclist, and in doing so causes a wreck, they must be held accountable," Cagle said. "This will raise awareness while dispensing justice."
"Victims of negligent and reckless driving, whether they are injured motorcyclists or the family of motorcyclists killed in crashes, should contact an experienced motorcycle accident attorney as soon as possible for the legal assistance and advocacy they deserve."
About The Cagle Law Firm
The Cagle Law Firm is a St. Louis personal injury law firm with an AV-rating by the distinguished Martindale-Hubbell legal directory. The firm's office is located at 211 North Broadway #2420, St. Louis, MO, 63102-2793, and its local phone number is (314) 276-1681. The firm serves clients in catastrophic injury cases in St. Louis and the greater St. Louis metropolitan area, including the eastern Missouri and southern Illinois communities of Ballwin, Belleville, Chesterfield, Collinsville, East St. Louis, Edwardsville, Kirkwood, Mehlville, Oakville, University City, Arnold, Columbia, Florissant, O'Fallon, St. Charles, St. Peters and Wildwood. The firm's practice areas include car accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, construction accidents, railroad accidents, birth injuries, premises liability, wrongful death, defective products, workers' compensation, chemical inhalation and dangerous drugs. To learn more about The Cagle Law Firm, call (800) 635-3302 or use its online contact form.
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