Now that our world is getting back to normal the roads are getting busier everyday. It makes sense that traffic would increase as employees return to their regular commutes and more and more restaurants and business are open. A prime example of how dangerous the roads are getting in the Treasure Valley is the increased use of the center lane aka the suicide lane. Meridian road in Meridian is a great example, I constantly see cars flying up and down that no-mans land just to get to the left hand turn lane before the light changes. The number of vehicles you see flying down the 84 seems to be increasing as well and two weeks ago there was a report confirming this on the Boise Police Department Facebook page:

Boise Police Department 

 "Officers are working to keep roads safe for everyone this summer. One spot where we continually see dangerous driving behavior is on inbound/outbound I-184 and in the downtown core. During two days of special patrols focusing on that area between 7pm and 1am officers stopped 183 drivers and issued 158 citations. Citations were issued for speeding, excessive speeding, equipment violations, license violations, unregistered vehicles and no insurance. Several vehicles were stopped traveling over 100mph.
Drivers are reminded to slow down and put away the phone and other distractions. Summer is called the 100 deadliest days and we want everyone traveling in Boise to get home safe. Officers will continue to focus on driving behavior in these areas and others throughout the summer."

The real question drivers should be asking themselves is at what cost does this unsafe driving come? We have the answer to that very specific question thanks to the Zebra , the nations largest insurance comparison site below. These figures are on an annual basis.

 

ViolationCost$ Increase% Increase
Driving with a suspended license$1,944$68854.8%
Leaving scene of an accident-hit and run$1,944$68854.8%
Reckless Driving$1,891$63550.6%
Racing$1,838$58246.3%
DUI$1,819$56344.8%
Refusal to submit to a chemical test$1,819$56344.8%
Passing school bus$1,761$50540.2%
At-Fault Accident - $1000-$2000$1,758$50240.0%
At-Fault Accident - Greater Than $2000$1,758$50240.0%
Open container$1,712$45636.3%
At-Fault Accident - Less Than $1000$1,656$40031.8%
Failure to yield$1,585$32926.2%
Operating a vehicle without permission$1,543$28722.9%

I feel like at this point a word to the wise is called for. BPD is on the lookout and the insurance companies are ready to cash in. Act accordingly.

 

See the Must-Drive Roads in Every State

20 chilling photos of the empty streets in downtown boise during the 2020 Pandemic

This is what Downtown Boise looked like during the first month of the pandemic back in 2019. A friend of mine took these photos with his son as the streets were empty and locked down to Idaho. This is a dark and quiet time that we'll never forget.

Gallery Credit: Kekeluv

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