Does A Growing Population + Increased Traffic Volume = Increased Traffic Accidents & Fatalities?
Northwest Arkansas celebrated a very important milestone in May 2014. The region, as announced by the Northwest Arkansas Council, reached 500,000 residents on May 28, 2014. The population data was drawn from the 2013 U.S. Census.
Northwest Arkansas is a region that encompasses Fayetteville, Springdale and the Rogers metropolitan area. As the region continues to grow, it is likely to attract more businesses, increased migration from surrounding areas and other regions of the country and a corresponding increase of the traffic volume on the roads.
Although the increase in population in Northwest Arkansas is noteworthy in the economic development sense, as personal injury lawyers we are concerned about the implications for the rate of car accidents.
The World Bank has reviewed the relationship between “Traffic Fatalities and Economic Growth” in a report analyzing the impact of economic development on the number of traffic fatalities. One of the chief problems facing developing nations is that the rate of car ownership is directly related to the number of fatalities, finds the report.
However, this problem is not limited only to developing nations; increased traffic volume poses a potential problem in developed nations as well. Indeed, in a review of traffic and traffic safety measures in developed nations, researchers found that the number of fatalities was “a function of the derivative of the amount of traffic in the mathematical sense.” In other words, as the rate of traffic volume changes, so too does the rate of traffic accidents and corresponding traffic fatalities in a given region.
The Northwest Arkansas Council indicates that the percentage of jobs, the level of personal income and the population have all risen. The council hopes to attract larger businesses to employ the growing population and increase the economic vibrancy of the region.
It is possible that wwith increased economic prosperity and a growing population in the Northwest Arkansas metropolitan region, traffic volume will increase along with traffic accidents and fatalities. Personal injury lawyers at Oliver Law Firm work to keep the public aware of all potential developing issues related to car accidents in Arkansas.
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