Injuries caused by road and highway hazards/defects
A host of factors can lead to a motor vehicle accident. However, wrecks are not always caused by operator error or defective equipment. Many times a serious injury or wrongful death on a roadway is due to problems with the road itself. Common causes of casualties on roads and highways include:
- defective road or highway design
- defective road or highway paving/construction (resulting in uneven paving or some other flaw)
- signage which is missing, damaged, improper or inadequate
- malfunctioning traffic signals
- insufficient construction zone designation
- signal man error or negligence
- safety barriers or guardrails which are nonexistent, faulty or damaged
- improper road or highway maintenance (resulting in potholes, cracking, buckling poor water drainage or pavement shoulder/edge drop-off)
- obstructed views and sight lines (due to rise/run, tree limbs or brush)
- insufficient lighting
- inappropriately high speed limits
- improper lane configurations
- unacceptable road drainage during wet weather
- road camber of inappropriate grade
- existence of objects, debris or obstacles (such as cones or barrels)
When a roadway gives rise to a motor vehicle accident, any number of parties may be liable for resulting injuries or deaths. Potential defendants include local (municipal/county), state and federal governments and their highway design/maintenance divisions. Additionally, other parties (such as engineers, adjacent landowners, road pavers and private landscape or maintenance companies) can be held responsible for losses attributable to the design and upkeep of the roadway and its shoulders.
In motor vehicle crash cases involving road defects, it is essential that a victim, with the assistance of able legal counsel, timely and thoroughly identify all the potential causes of and parties potentially liable for the wreck. The Dow Firm, P.C. exists to assist such victims.
