Construction Zone Car Accidents in St. Louis

It sometimes seems like the highways in St. Louis are perpetually under construction and maintenance, leading to traffic congestion, delays, uneven lanes, and dangerous obstructions. Unfortunately, road construction also increases the chance of car accidents. Crashes in St. Louis construction zones occur not only to workers driving construction vehicles on the job, but to passing motorists as well. If you’ve been injured in one of these incidents, a St. Louis accident attorney can help you pursue compensation and hold the responsible parties accountable.

What Makes Road Construction Zones In St. Louis so Hazardous?

Roads develop potholes and cracks, requiring routine maintenance. City road planning agencies also plan frequent upgrades, expansions, and improvements, requiring busy construction zones to complete necessary infrastructure upgrades. According to National Safety Council (NSC) data, there were 37,701 injuries and 891 fatalities in construction work zone car accidents in a single recent year. Unfortunately, road construction zones present significant safety hazards for passing motorists, including the following:

• Unexpected changes in traffic patterns
• Reduced lane numbers
• Narrowed lanes
• Obstructions such as barrels, traffic cones, barriers, and signs
• Construction debris
• Large construction vehicles and machinery in close proximity to vehicles
• Uneven lanes
• Detours

Speeding and aggressive drivers, frustrated motorists, and distracted drivers increase the chances of accidents in St. Louis construction zones.

Liability for Construction Zone Accidents in St. Louis

After a car accident in a St. Louis road construction area, it may take an experienced investigation by a victim’s St. Louis personal injury attorney to determine the party liable for the injury victim’s damages. There are many potentially liable parties, including a reckless or careless driver, a negligent construction crew, or a city road planning agency that failed to provide or execute a safe plan for a road construction project. Proving liability requires documenting compelling evidence that the at-fault party meets the following legal tenets of liability:

• The party at fault owed a legal duty of care to the injured victim
• They violated this duty of care through negligence
• The negligence directly caused the accident and injuries
• The injury victim suffered significant damages from the injury

After gathering evidence to meet the standards required to prove liability, a St. Louis construction zone accident lawyer carefully calculates the injury victim’s damages to maximize the compensation recoverable in their claim.

What Damages Can I Recover In a St. Louis Road Construction Accident Claim?

Car accidents in construction zones often cause far more than simple damage to a car. When an accident causes injuries, the physical and financial damages can be extensive. Depending on the circumstances of the accident, a successful road construction claim can recover damages such as the following:

• Medical expenses
• Future medical expenses
• Out-of-pocket costs
• Past and future income loss
• Diminished future earning capacity due to disability
• Compensation for pain and suffering

In some cases, additional compensation for catastrophic injuries such as disfigurement, loss of vision, loss of hearing, the loss of an organ, or diminished quality of life may be available to an injury victim with permanent adverse consequences. Compensation for emotional damages like PTSD, anxiety, or depression may be added to a claim if the damages are significant. If you lost a close family member in a St. Louis construction zone car accident, you can recover compensation through a St. Louis wrongful death claim.