Can Centerline Rumble Strips Save Lives In Rural West Virginia?

This month we covered the story of Tex and Carol Lee, a West Virginia couple who were seriously injured on a rural two-lane highway in Jefferson County. They believe that their traffic accident, which took place when an oncoming car drifted into their lane and hit them head on, could have been prevented by a centerline rumble strip. But what exactly is a rumble strip, and are they proven to save lives?

While rumble strips have been installed on most interstate shoulders across the country to prevent tired or distracted drivers from drifting off of the road, more and more states are installing grooved pavement along the double yellow line of rural two-lane highways, where crossover accidents often cause serious injuries and deaths.

Why do rumble strips work? Safety advocates say that they come in handy in a variety of situations common on rural stretches of highway: they make drivers aware of their drifting car if they are suffering from fatigue, fall asleep at the wheel, suffer from highway hypnosis, or are distracted from the road. In addition, rumble strips can help drivers stay in their lane in low-visibility conditions like fog, rain, or snow.

While some believe that rumble strips aren’t worth the money – they cost about $500 a mile to install along the center line of a road, and $1,000 a mile to install along two shoulders – studies have shown that they can significantly reduce the number of serious accidents on small highways. In fact, studies have shown that centerline rumble strips reduce the number of serious car accidents by 30 to 50 percent on rural two-lane highways and by 40 to 90 percent on urban roads with two-way traffic. While some motorcyclists believe that rumble strips add danger for those on motorized two- and three-wheeled vehicles, studies have shown that motorcycle accidents do not increase after the addition of the safety feature.

Have you or a loved one been injured in a two-lane rural highway accident after an accidental crossover? Speak to a West Virginia personal injury attorney today about your case.

 

About the Editors: Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton is a Virginia Beach, VA-based injury law firm whose attorneys focus on personal injury and accident law and we have handled thousands of car accident, truck wreck, and motorcycle crash cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself.

We've handled car accident cases throughout Virginia including Richmond, Fairfax, Alexandria, and the Hampton Roads region including Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Hampton, Portsmouth, Newport News, and Suffolk.

Our primary office is in Virginia Beach at the intersection of Diamond Springs Road and Northampton Boulevard. We also have an office on Eaton Street in Hampton. All of our accident injury attorneys were raised in Virginia and have deep roots with the community.

Our Virginia injury law firm has been recognized as one of the best injury law firms in Virginia by U.S. News & World Report since 2010. Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed on the National Million Dollar Advocates Forum since 2009 and included among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. Rick and Jim were named Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury Law since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of lawyers receive. In addition, we were the first injury law firm in Virginia to join Primerus, a select group of highly ethical and respected law firms.

We also offer free special reports on distracted driving and the Best Guide to Car Accident Injuries in Virginia.

While not every injury case meets our criteria, we offer a free, initial confidential injury case consultation, so call us at 1-800-752-0042. If you cannot get through due to high call volume, please leave a voicemail and we will get back to you shortly.