Orange County Personal Injury Law Blog

Mass transit keeps many people on their way to work or home and makes California traffic more bearable. It is difficult to imagine how bad it would be if more people had to drive in the Los Angeles area. And it is difficult to imagine how dangerous it could be to pedestrians and drivers alike if mass transit operators were not highly trained and certified to do their work.

One of the reasons mass transit works is because the liability is clear if something goes wrong. In the few cases that the fault in a collision or other type of accident cannot be determined, a civil court can help resolve the issue. But the liability often comes down to who failed to do their duty to others on the road.

Winter is here, and California is seeing more rain. Although precipitation can be a welcome relief on the parched coasts and plains, water on the road surface and fog above it can also cause serious problems for drivers.

A driver was struck outside his vehicle on the I-10 freeway in Cabazon recently. His car had left the road briefly and struck a retaining wall in foul weather conditions, and he had gotten out to check his car before attempting to leave while the car was in one of the four westbound traffic lanes.

From lane-splitting on the freeway to hugging curves on the Pacific Coast Highway, motorcycling carries its risks in California. Bikes are harder to see than conventional vehicles, and they offer almost no protection to riders in the case of a collision. Experienced bikers know how to protect themselves, but sometimes that is not enough.

Motorcyclists and bicyclists rely on drivers of cars and trucks to help them stay safe, and drivers have a legal obligation to assist victims and investigators in the case of a crash. Drivers who may have caused a collision through reckless or negligent driving may have stiffer criminal penalties if they abandon or attempt to leave the scene of an accident.

Trucks of all sizes bring important goods and materials to California. The booming construction industry in the Golden State would practically come to a halt without semitrucks. But the same advantages of large commercial vehicles may become problems if the trucker is involved in a high-speed collision with a much smaller passenger vehicle.

Distracted driving due to motorists use of cellphones or other electronic devices is a major risk factor for accidents on California roads. Although it is completely illegal, driving under the infleunce of drugs or alcohol is one of the most dangerous risks that a driver can take for himself and the other who share the roads.