BATON ROUGE- The Highway Safety Research Group at the LSU E. J. Ourso College of Business has released the 2010 Louisiana Traffic Records Data Report.

Helmut Schneider, director of HSRG and chair of the E. J. Ourso College’s Information Systems & Decision Sciences Department, said early submission of traffic crash statistics for 2010 is due to the cooperation of 158 police agencies in Louisiana and their use of the LACRASH software.

“This year’s report shows a decrease in alcohol-related crashes at 42 percent, tying an all-time low set in 2005,” Schneider said. “Fatalities and injury crashes also have significantly declined for the third year in a row.”

The report indicates the following occurrences:

• 634 fatal crashes (-13.0%)
• 712 fatalities (-13.6%)
• 68.5 thousand total injuries (-6.6%)           
• 104.7 thousand property-damage-only crashes

These crashes resulted in a cost of $5.32 billion to the citizens of Louisiana, or approximately $1,855 for every licensed driver in the state, Schneider said. The figures decreased slightly since 2009. 

The main contributing factors of Louisiana’s 2010 traffic fatalities were aggressive driving and a low percentage use of safety belts, according to Schneider.

The Highway Safety Research Group at LSU’s E. J. Ourso College of Business is revolutionizing the way traffic accidents are reported in Louisiana through recently developed software. Called the LACRASH system, this software allows police officers to fill out and submit their crash reports electronically, directly from their squad cars. For more information, visit www.bus.lsu.edu/hsrg or call 225-578-2090

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