If you see someone driving the wrong way on a small city street, they may just be confused. For instance, cities will sometimes redesign their roads, but someone with an outdated GPS may be driving in the wrong direction. It could also be a very young driver who just made a mistake and turned the wrong way because they don’t have much experience with one-way streets. These situations are dangerous, but the good news is that they often happen at low speeds.
There’s a greater level of danger, however, when someone drives the wrong way on the interstate. A head-on collision would happen at a combined speed of around 150 MPH. This is very likely to cause severe injuries and fatalities.
It’s also very hard for the drivers who are going in the right direction to avoid. They may have very little warning – just the flash of headlights coming toward them before the crash
Alcohol is the main cause
The top reason why this happens is because drivers are impaired and operating their vehicles under the influence of alcohol. If the driver was sober, they would’ve taken the correct ramp. But they’re drunk, so they missed the wrong-way signs, drove up the wrong ramp and started heading in the wrong direction.
Impairment also means that the driver is less likely to realize their mistake. Sober drivers do make mistakes as well, which may include wrong-way driving. But they should rectify it quickly, at least pulling to the side of the road so that they don’t cause an accident. An impaired driver, on the other hand, will likely just keep driving until they cause a crash, not even realizing they’ve made a mistake.
If you’ve been injured in such an accident, be sure you know how to seek financial compensation.