The city of Los Angeles is home to nearly four million residents. Still, even with such a large population, the city continues to grow as more people migrate from other regions to pursue a different lifestyle.
With so many individuals in one place, the potential for incidents rises. There are around 5.5 million car accidents in the U.S.every year. A significant portion of those collisions happens in Los Angeles. Does population growth in the city contribute to more car accidents in Los Angeles? Maybe so.
Truth By The Numbers
An average of one person is killed by a traffic accident in Los Angeles every 40 hours. This means that at least two people die every two days because of a car accident. The number rises even further when you consider congested areas like Downtown and Hollywood in which the average number of deaths is doubled in the same time period.
Some choose to move out of heavily congested areas in the hope of lowering their risk of a traffic accident. The reality, however, is that suburbia is becoming a myth in Los Angeles with every population boom.
It is estimated that the population of those over the age of 85-years-old is expected to triple by 2040 from approximately 5.7 million in 2011 to around 14.1 million. This record is evidence that people are living longer and, thus, require more space.
In Los Angeles, developers are dealing with migration as well as extended life expectancy by building more condominiums and luxury apartments. It is not uncommon for an area once overrun with single-family homes to now have a row of apartment buildings. More people in a region equals more cars, which ultimately means more opportunities for fender benders or worse.
Pedestrian vs. Bicycle
Despite what some may believe, bicyclists are considered motorists on the road. Some individuals invest in these two-wheel forms of transportation without any regard for how to properly operate them. There are even opportunities throughout Los Angeles to rent a bike for a day in an effort for the city to combat the excess of cars on the road.
It is problematic for a bicyclist to not understand his, or her, role as a motorist. In some instances, bicyclists even carry the impression that they are pedestrians as well, which creates problems for individuals who walk to and from work.
Bicycles contribute to car accidents when cyclists fail to follow all safety rules. The two-wheel transportation option becomes an absolute danger for pedestrians who are walking as, despite what some may think, it is possible to severely injure someone by running them down on a bike.
In some sense, it appears that Los Angeles has created an even bigger problem by offering easy access to rental bicycles. Now, individuals without regard for traffic laws can pay a small fee and endanger the lives of pedestrians walking on sidewalks or in crosswalks.
Careless bicyclists also pose a threat to themselves. It is more difficult for auto drivers to safely respond to cyclists who weave in and out of traffic or run red lights.
Following The Rules
The central issue that contributes to more car accidents in Los Angeles is ultimately a disregard for traffic laws. How, though, can a city enforce such rules to the fullest with an already large population that continues to grow?
Perhaps, residents can take it upon themselves to learn the laws before taking to the road. Federal law, for instance, allows for windshield cracks smaller than three-fourths of an inch so long as the affected area does not have more chips of the same size and is not located in the driver’s view. Understanding this regulation and following the rule can save law enforcement the trouble of giving non-compliant drivers tickets for driving with severely damaged windshields.
Los Angeles is popular for more reasons than one. Auto accidents are a characteristic of the city that some attribute to an increased population. While there is no solid proof of collisions and population growth correlating, it does not hurt to consider the possibility of more people calling Los Angeles home serving as a significant cause for increased accidents on the road.
