Most people don’t think much about the stripes in the middle of roads: Those little yellow or white stripes that run through almost all of our major roads and highways. However, these lines are critical to the safety of drivers. Especially at night, when most motor vehicle accidents occur, we depend on these little stripes to keep everyone in their lanes and avoid major accidents.
But what happens when these lines begin to fade and become harder to see? Or if state and local budget cuts result in failure to maintain these lines?
The Vanishing Lines
According to a recent article from the Washington Post, the roadways lines might actually be getting harder to see. The high expense of creating and maintaining these lines combined with recession-era budget cuts has resulted in less reflective glare, making the lines more difficult to distinguish. Especially in rainy conditions and at night when lane-striping is already dulled, these lines are getting to be extremely hard to see.
What Does This Mean For Drivers?
These vanishing lines can have a number of implications. First, it is always important to drive with extreme caution, but blurred highway lines make it especially important to use caution, especially when driving at night.
Second, there could be implications in terms of liability for serious accidents. What if an accident is directly caused by unclear lines in the road? Could the state or municipality charged with maintaining the roadway infrastructures be held liable?
It is an interesting question, to be sure. But the most important thing you can do for now is be extremely careful on the road, especially at night and in rainy conditions. If you are ever in a serious accident caused by dim roadway stripes, talk with an experienced motor vehicle accident lawyer right away.