We are entering the most dangerous time of the year for drunk drivers.
Recently we have written about the threat of early darkness. Back-to-school dangers. Holiday and tourism traffic. And the increase in cycling traffic that comes with fall weather. But no discussion of autumn road safety is complete without mentioning the outsized risk of intoxicated motorists — a threat that reaches its annual peak during the fall football and end-of-year holiday seasons.
Hello Darkness My Old Friend
While Sound of Silence was recorded 55 years ago, early darkness comes to Southwest Florida every autumn. 
By the time Daylight Savings Time begins November 4, we will all be dealing with dusk or darkness during our evening commute. Love it or hate it, early darkness will be with us again until spring.
A report published by the National Institutes of Health found an increased risk of car accidents immediately after the autumn shift in Daylight Savings Time. However, it also found a similar increased risk with the spring shift (which provides more light later in the day.) Researchers believe it likely that the time-shift’s impact on sleeping patterns is likely responsible for making the roads more dangerous.
Cool October weather brings welcome relief from the heat and humidity of a long summer. The National Weather Service indicates that by mid-October average daily temperatures in Southwest Florida will be nearly 10 degrees cooler, even as the insufferable humidity of September disappears.
Fall also begins the long cycling season in SWFL, as even the most dedicated riding masochist sees less road time amid summer’s scorching temperatures and frequent storms. Many riding events are planned for autumn. The increasing number of riders on the road will also coincide with early darkness and the return of snowbird and tourism traffic. 
An investigate report by The News-Press recently examined five years worth of bicycle crash data in revealing that Lee and Collier counties were among the most dangerous counties in the state for serious and fatal bicycling accidents. And the risks are on the rise in both counties, with Collier crashes up almost 40 percent in three years. Crashes in Lee County spiked more than 70 percent.
According to News-Press statistics, more than 100 serious or fatal riding accidents occur each month from September to May. Riding risks peak from January-March, with about 140 accidents a month reported to local law enforcement. Statewide, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reported more than 6,500 bicycle crashes claimed 133 lives in 2016, making Florida the most dangerous state in the nation for bicycling accidents.
Safety improvements to Lehigh Acres roads and a recent settlement against the City of Cape Coral highlight the risks of dangerous road conditions in Southwest Florida.
NBC News reports Lehigh Acres is eliminating several dangerous traffic turns after a series of traffic collisions. 
There have been nearly 20 reported collisions in the last two years because of left-hand turns at Fifth Street West and Gunnery Road. Cars from every direction turn left around traffic coming off of the main traffic light on Lee Boulevard. On Thursday, work crews will extend an already-existing median so that no one can turn left at Fifth Street West.
Residents are happy crews are improving the crash-prone spot because of how close it is to Lehigh Senior High, Varsity Lakes Middle School and Tortuga Elementary School. The much-needed safety improvement cost the county just $5,000 and will be completed by the end of the month.
A four-vehicle crash closed Southbound Interstate 75 in North Fort Myers this week, after a semi, a camper trailer and several vehicles were involved in a collision.
FOX4 News reported the incident closed the highway at mile marker 147, which is near the Tucker’s Grade and Bayshore exits. The Florida Highway Patrol reported a speeding car could not avoid hitting the rear-end of a tanker truck. The car went out of control and spun into the path of a tractor trailer, which veered into the path of a pickup truck towing a camper. Traffic on I-75 was diverted onto Tucker’s Grade while authorities cleaned up the mess.
The 34-year-old driver was uninjured. He was charged with careless driving and failure to provide insurance at the scene of a crash. Several other motorists involved in the incident were transported to Lee Memorial Hospital.
A car rammed into Fins Seafood & Dive Bar in Cape Coral over the weekend, stunning inside guests and killing the driver.
Guests were startled but unhurt after the vehicle smashed into an outside wall along the restaurant’s seating area. Authorities believe the 50-year-old driver may have suffered a medical emergency. She was transported to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead according to The News-Press.
The incident occurred about 5:30 p.m. Friday, when a 2001 Nissan Xterra SUV, continued north along the center median where it collided with a bush and several trees, veered left and entered the southbound lanes of Del Prado, crossed all three southbound lanes and hit the curb in front of Fins Seafood & Dive Bar at 3422 Del Prado, according to the Cape Coral police report.
Our property injury lawyers in Fort Myers and throughout Southwest Florida know area residents are at high risk of such incidents for a number of reasons.
New research suggests parents should leave their children in rear-facing car seats until they have outgrown them.
While it’s unclear when Florida will update its own recommendations, parents and caregivers should start using the new guidelines as soon as possible. USA Today reports the new car-seat guidelines for rear-facing seats are designed to save lives. Safety advocates now say children should use the seats until they reach the height and weight limit suggested by the manufacturer. Newer, stronger seats are allowing parents to use them for larger children.
Previous guidelines suggest use of rear-facing car seats until a child reached the age of 2.
“Fortunately, car seat manufacturers have created seats that allow children to remain rear-facing until they weigh 40 pounds or more, which means most children can remain rear-facing past their second birthday,” said Dr. Benjamin Hoffman, lead author of the policy statement and chair of the AAP Council on Injury, Violence and Poison Prevention. “It’s best to keep your child rear-facing as long as possible. This is still the safest way for children to ride.”
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Two construction workers were killed last week in a Florida scaffolding accident after their scaffold collapsed at a JW Marriott Hotel in Orange County.
Four workers were on the scaffolding when it collapsed at the site on Chelonia Parkway near Disney in Bonnet Creek. Two workers fell while another held on and the other worker was able to climb to safety, according to a report in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Officials say workers were pouring concrete when the accident happened at the resort hotel, which is under construction.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will investigate the incident.
From all of us at Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner, Attorneys for the Injured, we wish you a safe and enjoyable Labor Day weekend with friends and family.
However, we remind you that will mean putting particular emphasis on safe driving as Labor Day weekend is typically the second most-dangerous weekend of the year on Florida roads, according to the Sun-Sentinel. 
Any focus on back-to-school safety would be incomplete without addressing the biggest risk on the road: Teen drivers.
We’ve recently address school bus accidents and bicyclist and pedestrian safety as students return to class throughout Collier, Lee and Charlotte counties. But it is our teen drivers who face the highest risks of being involved in a serious or fatal traffic collision.
