Living in Florence, you may travel up to Cincinnati for work or cross the border into Ohio to see friends or family regularly. As you know, the area can be dangerous, and it’s relatively busy with construction and traffic nearly around the clock.
That’s why it may not be surprising that there have been so many wrong-way collisions between Southern Ohio and Northern Kentucky. At least seven wrong-way collisions have happened in that vicinity since 2012.
Why do wrong-way crashes happen?
They can have a number of causes. One could be intoxication, for instance, with a driver who enters the highway from an off-ramp or who suddenly makes a U-turn into the wrong lane (U-turns are illegal in Ohio, but they are not illegal in Kentucky). Another cause could be construction. Getting stuck in traffic is no one’s idea of a good time, but some people try to get back to a nearby exist by traveling against traffic in the emergency lane.
These are just two possible explanations for wrong-way crashes. In many cases, they happen because of simple mistakes. Drivers are tired, intoxicated or distracted, and they turn into the wrong lane before continuing to travel.
What should you do if you see a wrong-way driver?
If you see someone traveling the wrong way and can avoid them, call 911 as quickly as you can. The police are often nearby on highways, and with multiple motorists calling, it’s likely that they can come to the scene and stop the vehicle. If not, they’ll still be on their way quickly to the scene of any accident that takes place, reducing the time it takes for victims to get help.