Denver Personal Injury Law Blog

Knowing the rules of the road is important as a bicyclist in Colorado. Yet it is perhaps even more important for drivers to understand what they can and cannot do around bikers. In a collision between a vehicle and a bicycle, the vehicle almost always comes out in better shape.

Colorado's bicycle laws serve to protect the rights of bikers on the state's roadways. Everyone should take the time to read up on bicyclist rights and responsibilities, to better protect these vulnerable road users.

Few milestones are more important to teenagers than obtaining a driver’s license. If you have a young driver in your family, though, you should know about the dangers of summertime driving. That is, summer months are so risky for young motorists that AAA has identified the days between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend as the 100 deadliest days of the year for teen drivers. 

Even though Denver tends to have mild winters, icy roads can be a challenge for young drivers. Still, summer may present a bigger risk. Why is summer so dangerous for teen motorists? According to experts, there are three primary reasons. 

Many may think that Colorado winters, with their ice and snow-slicked roads, are the most dangerous time to be on the road, but this is simply not true. The time between Memorial Day and Labor Day sees the most fatal car accidents, more than any other time of the year. Recent years have seen a 20% increase in fatalities during this time. Thirty-one percent of fatalities that took place in the state in 2017 took place during the 100 days of summer.

Ninety-four percent of crashes are caused by someone else's negligence. Whether a driver is distracted, speeding, or impaired, unsafe actions have the potential to end the lives of other people on the road. The other important factor that ties in to the increase in crashes is the number of vehicles on the road, many of them tourists who are unfamiliar with the mountainous terrain.

Many Colorado teens are entering the workforce for the first time this summer. Their newfound independence might come at a price, however, as research shows that 54% of workplace injuries affected teens in their first few months on the job. This incidence rate is two to three times higher than that of an average worker in Colorado.