Construction Hazards and other Dangerous Road Conditions in New York City

Construction Hazard Accidents

Unsafe road conditions and construction hazards can endanger the lives of vehicle occupants, cyclists, and pedestrians. Roadway hazards pose a serious risk of accidents because drivers tend to swerve or veer into adjacent lanes in order to avoid roadway obstructions, such as potholes or concrete median dividers.  In this blog, we examine some of these hazardous conditions and potentially liable parties for accidents caused by unsafe road conditions.

Dangerous road conditions like potholes, right-angle pavement drop-offs, construction equipment or barriers, and other types of obstructions can cause a catastrophic accidents.  Some unsafe roadway conditions result from the degradation of a street or highway’s surfaces that have not been resurfaced for a long period of time.  Construction zones also pose potential dangers when construction equipment and debris rest on the roadway obstructing the path of vehicles.  Some examples of dangerous road conditions include:

• Concrete median dividers
• Potholes
• Shoulder/Pavement drop-offs
• Confusing signs
• Black ice and isolated ice patches
• Dangerous intersections
• Roads that have not been resurfaced for a long period of time
• Objects on roadways (including debris or heavy equipment)
• Unsafe curves, such as horizontal curves
• Construction zone hazards (including debris, inadequate signs, concrete barriers, etc.)
• Uneven roads

Certain locations pose an increased risk of unsafe drop-offs, including horizontal curves, turnarounds, unpaved pullouts, and shaded or eroded areas.  Uneven roads constitute a related type of dangerous condition. Uneven roads result from partial resurfacing with an old road adjacent to the newly resurfaced road. The result involves the difference of an inch or more of the road’s leveling.

Adverse weather conditions also can cause dangerous road conditions, such as potholes, black ice, isolated ice patches, and wet surfaces. Wet surfaces can cause an automobile to skid along the surface through a process called hydroplaning. Hydroplaning frequently results in serious accidents because drivers often ignore the dangers of driving fast during downpours, especially the danger associated with driving fast during the first rainfall of the season.  Similarly, a thin coating of ice on the surface of the road can be practically invisible to drivers because it is camouflaged with the color of black asphalt.  Potholes, a byproduct of rain, represent yet another road hazards resulting from adverse weather conditions.  Potholes can be caused by the contraction of pavement when water becomes trapped inside after the pavement freezes.

Some roads have been found to be notorious for poor visibility, obstructed lines of sight, and poor landscaping maintenance creating unnecessary and avoidable accident risk. When public entities responsible for the construction and safe maintenance of a roadway create such hazards or fail to repair these unsafe conditions despite complaints or repeated accidents, the public entity can be liable, but special deadlines and notice requirements apply to such cases.  Contractors, subcontractors, construction companies, and others involved in causing an unsafe road condition also might be financially responsible for accident-related injuries.

Even if an unsafe road condition constitutes a factor in causing an accident, drivers can still be liable for their own negligent conduct, such as failing to respond in time to hazards because of distracted driving or taking inappropriate evasive measures like swerving into another vehicle.  If you or a loved has been injured or you have lost a loved one in an automobile accident caused by a hazardous road condition, you should speak with one of our experienced New York accident injury attorneys to learn about your rights concerning any financial compensation you may be owed.

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