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October 4, 2004
Drunk driving and not wearing a safety belt costs
drivers billions of dollars according to the 2003
Louisiana Traffic Records Data Report, prepared
by Dr. Helmut Schneider of LSU’s E. J. Ourso
College of Business. Schneider and Jim Champagne,
executive director of the Louisiana Highway Safety
Commission, presented the report at a press conference
on October 4, 2004, at the Lod Cook Alumni Center
on LSU’s campus.
In 2003, traffic crashes cost Louisianans $5.7
billion, amounting to approximately $2,022 per
licensed driver. 45 percent of traffic fatalities
were alcohol-related, with 66 percent of occupants
who died in a crash did not use a safety belt.
In 2003, there were 791 fatal crashes. The number
of injuries decreased from 2002, as well as the
number of fatalities; 82,000 injuries were recorded,
a decrease of 5 percent, and 902 deaths occurred,
a decrease of 1.3 percent from the 2002 total.
403 of the deaths are estimated to be alcohol
related.
The declining use of safety belts is also a primary
factor in the number of fatalities and injuries
on Louisiana roads. 66 percent of drivers and
71 percent of occupants aged 5 and older killed
in traffic accidents were not wearing a safety
belt. 38 percent of children age 4 and younger
killed in traffic crashes were not properly restrained
in a child safety seat.
For more information about the Louisiana Traffic
Records Data Report or the E. J. Ourso College
of Business, visit www.bus.lsu.edu
or contact Wendy Osborn Luedtke at 225/578-8865
or wendy@lsu.edu.
Wendy Osborn
Luedtke
E. J. Ourso College of Business
225/578-8865
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