Holiday Travel: Staying Safe

Picture this: It’s late at night on a holiday, and emergency workers are on high alert. In upstate New York, a speeding car splits into three pieces after slamming into a utility pole. In Longview, Texas, a drunk driver hits a Mitsubishi Montero, killing a college student. In Western Michigan, a driver loses control of her car and crashes into a parked ambulance. Just another New Year’s Eve, right? Wrong. These all happened on Thanksgiving, the most dangerous holiday of the year for drivers, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Why? Because Thanksgiving is a day when heavy traffic, drinking and long-distance trips make for a deadly combination.

David Kelly is the administrator for the NHTSA, and says now that plane ticket prices have gone up, and gas prices are going down, more people are doing their holiday traveling by car. When visiting loved ones, people try to cram in as many activities as they can before heading home. So, you have travelers making a mad dash from an alcohol-infused family gathering to the car, trying to make it home in time for work the next day.

Then, when people are in slow-moving traffic, they get stressed – which leads to horn honking, shouting and cutting people off. Drinking and driving is bad enough. Add aggression into the mix and you’re really in trouble. Forbes magazine looked at data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and AAA to determine the most fatal holidays and it turns out that we’re right in the midst of the biggies.

• Christmas averages 385 vehicular deaths each year. You also need to beware of those last-minute shopping days. December 22nd, 23rd and 24th all ranked in the top five most deadly days overall.
• New Year’s Eve and Day averages 421 deaths each year. Champagne and icy roads don’t mix.
• Thanksgiving is the most dangerous holiday for drivers, averaging 573 vehicular deaths each year.

Obviously, the best way to stay safe on dangerous driving days is to stay home, fly, or take the train. Still, many people have no option but to drive. For these travelers, Kelly recommends the usual: wear a seatbelt, don’t speed, make a sober plan for getting home - and give yourself plenty of time to do it.

MICHELLE

NHTSA, AAA