This map, charted from data recorded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), is designed to help educate drivers about the dangers of red-light running and reduce the number and severity of crashes due to such occurrences.
For truck drivers, this map could also provide some helpful insight into where the risk of encountering a red-light runner is highest. And that risk spikes the most in these 10 U.S. cities, ranked in order:
- Houston, TX
- Phoenix, AZ
- Los Angeles, CA
- Las Vegas, NV
- Chicago, IL
- Miami, FL
- Dallas, TX
- Philadelphia, PA
- Tucson, AZ
- Denver, CO
NCSR President Melissa Wandall added that the fatalities illustrated by the map are even linked all the way down to the actual intersection where a collision involving red-light running occurred.
[As an aside, Wandall has a very personal stake in this as her husband died in red-light running crash 12 years ago.]
“These dots represent a life cut too short, family and friends left to soon,” she noted in a statement. “The harsh reality is that red-light running can affect anyone on the roadways if more action isn’t taken to prevent such reckless driving.”
That’s a danger truck drivers appreciate more than most, I would think.