Getting beyond that speed camera debate, have you yet been made aware of a recently published study in which HIGHWAY CONDITIONS were the primary factor in slightly more than HALF of all traffic deaths, contributing to more deaths than speeding, drunken driving or failure to use seat belts?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/01/AR2009070101700.html

I don't favor speed cameras because I view their use more as a revenue stream than a deterrent (no points, no insurance premium hit, no possibility to be arrested, only fines), but I acknowledge that it's one tool among many in a toolbox. For all the space your column devoted to the issue, though, would you please be sure to devote ample space to identifying problem roads in Maryland - poorly designed, poorly maintained, etc. - that are leading to more dangerous crashes than should be expected?

Comment: Pete, that appears to be an inactive link. If you could send that article to michael.dresser@baltsun.com, I'd be more than happy to look at it. Meanwhile, I'd be interested in any reports of poorly designed roads. But bear in mind that any road can be dangerous if there are dangerous people driving on it.

In lieu of the WaPo article (registration required), here's the study report: http://www.artba.org/mediafiles/pirestudy.pdf

It goes without saying that DWI, DUI, DWT, etc, are all examples of dangerous driving with potentially perilous results, but this study makes the case (and the sponsorship of the study merits some disclaimer) that the design of many of our roads is too antiquated to meet modern driving needs. But the data compiled are compelling. In 31.4% of all traffic crashes nationally in 2006, road conditions contributed to crash occurrence or severity. "Road-relatedness" rose with crash severity. Road-related crashes accounted for
38.2% of non-fatal injuries (2.2 million cases) and 52.7% of fatalities (22,455 deaths).

I can't question the study you've quoted, but doesn't one have to leave the road surface in order to hit any tree, pole or bridge? How can that be attributed to a highway condition?

COMMENT: Good question. I'm certainly not endorsing the study, which was underwritten by vested interests. But the criterion here is "contributing factor," which can mean that tree or pole made a bad situation worse. Personally, I'd put more responsibility on the driver than the road.

That's a fair point, but I think the folks who summarized (including myself) the study used a little too much shorthand - the study refers to conditions more broadly to cover design, wear-n-tear, etc, not just "it's bad when wet"

While I wholeheartedly agree that driver judgment is a looming factor, what can't be ignored in Maryland is that there are known problem spots on superhighways/interstates, intersected divided highways, state roads, etc. Example? I-95 in Howard county in two spots. 1) Interchange with MD 175 - when I lived in Columbia just two short years ago, there were frequent collisions on the interstate near this near interchange. Many severe enough to force the closure of the interstate, many of them merited either a Medevac flight to Shock Trauma or a coroner's van. 2) Southbound interchange with MD-32, traffic enters the interstate from the left, closest to faster moving traffic.

When you tally the number of collisions, injuries, and deaths at particular areas, at some point you need to question whether it's all just a coincidence that poor driver judgment, speeding, drunkenness, etc. all happened to be resulting in wrecks at or near the same spot.

OK, I can accept the argument that patterns indicate a possible road design problem; that's more palatable. Thank goodness we're starting to get rid of the left lane entry ramps; those were a bad idea even when speeds were slower.