You see lights coming toward you on the interstate. Fortunately, they’re in the left lane, and you’re in the right lane. You slow down and pull off to the shoulder, letting the wrong-way driver go by.
Even though you weren’t hit, it can be a terrifying event. The driver is clearly doing something very wrong, breaking all of the rules of the road on the interstate. It’s also incredibly dangerous for everyone else. Odds are that that driver will cause a serious wreck in the next few miles. Why would this happen?
Driving impairment can cause significant mistakes
The big issue is that the driver is probably under the influence of alcohol. Because they’re impaired, they’re more likely to make major mistakes, including those that they would never make while sober. Studies have found that the main reason for these wrong-way crashes is alcohol use.
That doesn’t necessarily mean it is the only reason. Perhaps an elderly driver is dealing with the symptoms of Alzheimer’s, so they’ve simply gotten confused and made a mistake. Or, perhaps a young teen driver isn’t very experienced, so they drove up the exit ramp instead of the on-ramp. Their lack of experience led to the error, and that means that they may not be sure what to do next.
However, both of these things happen far less often than drunk drivers who get on the interstate heading in the wrong direction. If you are injured in an accident that one of these drivers causes, then you need to know how to seek financial compensation for medical bills, lost wages and other costs.