
Statistics on Cause of Crashes in the US (2008) - 11thEarlOfMar
https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/811059
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11thEarlOfMar
I recalled a fatal accident in San Jose a few years ago where the driver was
suffering a hypoglycemic event and lost consciousness after reaching an exit
on I-280. He did not reduce speed and crashed into another vehicle, killing
both passengers. [0]

That led me to search for statistics on how many crashes are caused by
incapacitated drivers, and to this NHTSA report from 2008 [1]. Page 30 shows
driver-caused, critical pre-crash events involving "Heart attack or other
physical impairment" as the cause of 2.4% of accidents where the cause is
attributed to the driver (as opposed to mechanical failure, act of God, etc.),
numbering an estimated 48,822 crashes from 2005 to 2007.

However, scanning the table, I note that _40%_ of crashes attributed to the
driver are due to:

\- Inadequate Surveillance

\- Internal Distraction

\- External Distraction

\- Inattention (i.e. Daydreaming, etc.)

All of these are resolved, to a large degree, by the proliferation of driver
assistance technologies that are coming into the market today.

From my perspective, the moral question is that some people will die because
of this technology. Other people will be saved. In the end, it is like
vaccination in that the peril is shifted from one population to another, but
overall, life expectancy is improved. It's here to stay.

[0] [http://www.protectconsumerjustice.org/two-wrongful-death-
cas...](http://www.protectconsumerjustice.org/two-wrongful-death-cases-
involve-diabetic-reactions-while-driving-company-vehicles.html)

