Recent Car Accidents Show Wrong-Way Driving Common in Tampa

Tampa, FL (Law Firm Newswire) December 29, 2014 – In 2014 alone, 11 people have died in six Tampa Bay area collisions that involved wrong-way driving.

Four fraternity brothers from the University of South Florida died in February when a wrong-way driver crashed into their vehicle on Interstate 275. Several other wrong-way crashes and arrests of wrong-way drivers have brought national attention to the problem.

“Clearly, negligence on the part of the wrong-way driver is a factor in many of these tragic accidents,” said Robert Joyce, a prominent Tampa car accident attorney with Joyce & Reyes.

With new attention paid to the problem of wrong-way driving, observers have speculated as to causes and solutions, with some suggesting that construction zones may confuse drivers, or that wrong-way signs on interstate exit ramps need to be made more visible. However, a recent Tampa Bay Times analysis indicated that the problem is not new, and the cause is often simply drunk driving.

According to a Times review of Florida Highway Patrol records, troopers have responded to at least 70 wrong-way driving incidents on Tampa Bay highways over the past seven years. That is in addition to almost 700 incidents of wrong-way driving on local streets in 2014 alone.

According to the Times analysis of crash data, driver impairment is a key factor in almost all wrong-way driving incidents. Law enforcement authorities agree that drunk driving is the primary cause of such crashes.

“I really think that it’s drunk driving,” said Tampa police officer John Stanjeski, who pulled over a wrong-way driver on I-275 in the early morning hours of October 26. “Alcohol impairs your judgment, and people are making bad decisions.”

Learn more at http://www.joyceandreyespa.com Joyce and Reyes Law Firm, P.A. 307 S Hyde Park Ave Tampa, FL 33606 Call: 813.251.2007