Common Road Features Pose Real Risks

Sometimes, the features on a road pose hazards to drivers that can be difficult to avoid.

There are a few common areas where accidents tend to occur more-frequently, and where you have to be especially careful of other drivers.

On-ramps and off-ramps.

Whether you are entering or exiting a freeway, the ramps are very dangerous places to be. If you are entering, you'll quickly find out that many people don't get the concept that merging with traffic is supposed to work something like a zipper, with each car neatly fitting in front or behind the cars on the freeway. Be very careful when you're entering. When you are exiting, be wary of traffic backups or drivers who are going much more slowly than you would expect them to be on an exit ramp.

Intersections.

Intersections are places where many different types of accidents occur. Accidents involving people not obeying traffic signals are far too common. Even when people do obey traffic signals, pedestrians in the crosswalk, drivers who do not slow down quickly enough to avoid a rear end accident and other hazards abound. Be wary at intersections. Always assume that somebody is going to run a yellow light or a fresh red light if their driving gives you that impression.

Toll booths.

Toll booths pose another significant hazard. Particularly for drivers who are not accustomed to driving on a toll road, there is a risk that they may end up rear ending someone because they don't realize that the toll booth is coming up or that they may end up causing an accident when they have to merge into traffic again after paying the toll. Fatal accidents on toll roads are sometimes the results of dangerous design, inappropriate signage or drivers simply being negligent. You have to speak with an attorney if you want to sue over a car accident that occurred on a toll road.

Assessing the accident.

If you're not sure exactly what happened that led up to an accident, don't let that dissuade you from speaking with an attorney. It's not uncommon for people to have a rather foggy memory about these things and, if that happened to you, talking to an attorney may result in the attorney wanting to investigate the accident themselves and, if they take you on as a client, they may be able to win compensation for you from a jury award or from a settlement negotiated with the other driver's insurance company.