Lawyer Monthly - October 2021 Edition

WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM | OCT 2021 56 THOUGHT LEADER - STEPHEN K BROOKS Why Are Truck Accidents Surging in Florida? Worrying data has shown a steady increase in road accidents in Florida despite pandemic measures having reduced traffic. Below, we hear insight from Steve Brooks on the causes of this surge in truck and other vehicular accidents in the Sunshine State. He also offers his advice for how victims of truck accidents should act immediately following the incident. location. This is driving additional warehousing and logistic centres as the main “inland” port in the state. This development has been a boon for the local economy — but with the good comes the bad. The highways that intersect Central Florida have the same number of lanes as they did seven or eight years ago. These same roads now must support the dramatic growth in truck traffic that comes with the increase in warehousing incredibly busy I-75 runs from north to south. Both Highway 27 and Highway 41 crisscross through Central Florida as well. I consider this to be the centre of the state. That’s why Central Florida is nicknamed the “Heartland.” Due to being in the middle of the state, Central Florida is a natural centre for warehousing, trucking and logistics. The Central Florida Intermodal Logistics Center was recently developed near Winter Haven due to its geographic Has there been a notable change in rates of truck and other vehicular accidents in your jurisdiction in recent years? Yes, there has. Here in Florida, we saw a record number of traffic fatalities in 2019, according to the most recent data available. Even last year with decreased driving due to the pandemic, traffic deaths increased by 8% year over year. Truck accident statistics are even more unsettling. The number of large trucks involved in fatal accidents recently increased over 4% in just one year’s time. Fatalities of those in crashes involving large trucks are up 36% from 2010, and injuries are up 96%. How has Florida’s transformation into a transportation and logistics hub contributed to dangers on the road? Central Florida is intersected by I-4, which runs from Orlando to Tampa, and the