Cheap Shots: Speeding Statistics Found To Be Misleading
July 17, 2017
U.S. Department of Transportation figures are not always what they seem…
Although data from a 2015 traffic study clocks in speeding-related fatalities at 27 percent, the numbers read differently as the department uses a comprehensive and unfair definition of speeding. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), “ if any driver in the crash was charged with a speeding-related offense or if a police officer indicated that racing, driving too fast for conditions, or exceeding the posted speed limit was a contributing factor in the crash,” then speeding was a factor in the crash. This definition, then, gives police officers free reign to decide what is and isn’t speeding, even if the officer was unable to detect their speed or the driver was found to be driving under the speed limit.
In actuality, around 7 percent of drivers involved in fatal crashes were exceeding the speed limit at the time of the crash, a figure much lower than the one the NHTSA is flaunting. It just goes to show that officials will go to great lengths to justify speeding ticket revenue, even stretching the definition of speeding itself.
More information, including a link to the NHTSA study, can be found on TheNewspaper.com.
