A new crash program on safety
Accidents happen, the saying goes. Etymologically, that鈥檚 what accident means.
It comes from a Latin verb, accidere, meaning 鈥渢o happen,鈥� or 鈥渢o fall out,鈥� according to the ; compare .听
The meaning of accident evolved to this sense, from the Oxford English Dictionary: 鈥淪omething that happens by chance or without expectation; an event that is without apparent or deliberate cause.鈥�
Farther down the page, we find Definition 8c: 鈥淎n unfortunate and unforeseen event involving damage or injury; spec. a collision or similar incident in which at least one of the parties involved is a vehicle.鈥�
Today, such 鈥渋ncidents鈥� are a leading cause of death in the United States and other places, especially among young people. Clearly, new safety technologies and better public policies have reduced the rate of auto-related fatalities 鈥� in the US, down to 1.13 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in 2009, according to US government figures, as cited in .听
But that鈥檚 still some 30,000 fatalities a year. If the asphalt realm were seen as a theater of war, its casualties would be comparable to those of other conflicts 鈥� the in Vietnam over 20 years, or 33,000 in Korea (1950-53).听
And so several American cities, including Washington, New York, , and Los Angeles, have adopted some form of 鈥淰ision Zero,鈥� an approach to traffic safety that originated in Sweden in the 1990s. The goal is zero traffic deaths, period. The emphasis is on better road design and lower speed limits. Since Sweden adopted Vision Zero, its traffic fatalities have dropped by half, to about a quarter of the US rate, according to .听
Against this backdrop, safety advocates in the US have argued that is the wrong word for fatal road encounters. Try crash or collision instead, they advise.
Now they have gotten the ear of The Associated Press. Its stylebook directly guides or at least influences countless publications around the US, including the Monitor.听
And so it was big news when new guidance from last month鈥檚 American Copy Editors Society meeting: 鈥淲hen negligence is claimed or proven, avoid accident, which can be read as exonerating the person responsible.鈥澛�
Among those cheering was activist Amy Cohen, as saying, 鈥淔or far too long, news outlets have reflexively used the word 鈥榓ccident,鈥� essentially throwing up their hands and saying traffic deaths are inevitable, something no one is responsible for, like bad weather. With this Stylebook guideline, the AP is sending an important message that crashes are preventable, that we can fix dangerous streets, and we can deter careless, negligent and reckless driving.鈥澛�
When people speak of 鈥渞eframing the terms of public debate,鈥� this is the kind of thing that鈥檚 meant. Accident leaves us in the realm of spilled milk and leaky diapers.听
But safety, as they say, is no accident.
