Is it ever safe to turn left in Louisville or across Kentucky?  There are a number of common causes of car accidents in Louisville.  For many years distracted driving, drunk driving, and speeding were the leading causes of motor vehicle accidents in Kentucky. Recently, a crash data provided by the Kentucky State Police shows that a far more innocent behavior results in car accidents: turning left.

Of course, turning left in and of itself is usually neither illegal nor seen as generally irresponsible. In some cases, left-hand turns may not be allowed or may require extra caution, but few people would say turning left carries the same recklessness as something like distracted driving. However, the data shows that more than 60 percent of all intersection and crossing-path accidents stem from left turns. A meager 5.7 percent of crossing-path crashes involve right turns.

A study has also found that left turns are about three times more likely to result in a deadly pedestrian accident than right turns. So, the fact is that left-hand turns clearly involve a significant crash risk factor. Of course, drivers can eliminate much of this risk by simply driving safely–following the rules of the road, yielding when required, looking for pedestrians and motorcycles, etc. Nonetheless, left-hand turns do involve a number of variables that may breed dangerous circumstances.

Is it ever safe to turn left and should you look for an alternative route in some cases?  Some drivers may do this already, making a promise to themselves only to turn left when absolutely necessary. UPS has actually directed its drivers to avoid left-hand turns in certain cases; the company states that about 90 percent of the turns its drivers make are right-hand turns.

While it may be pretty unlikely that traffic agencies will begin rewriting the rules to ban left turns, recent accident data should be a reminder to Louisville drivers that left-hand turns can be dangerous. Kentucky residents may benefit from limiting their frequency of left turns, as well as being sure to be careful and responsible when turning left. Failing to do the latter can result in fatal car accidents, and negligent drivers can be held criminally responsible as well as accountable for wrongful death.