AP IMPACT: DEADLY SIDE EFFECT TO FRACKING BOOM

[xchrom]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_DRILLING_TRAFFIC_DEATHS_2ND_LD_WRITETHRU?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-05-05-15-03-57

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (AP) -- Booming production of oil and natural gas has exacted a little-known price on some of the nation's roads, contributing to a spike in traffic fatalities in states where many streets and highways are choked with large trucks and heavy drilling equipment.

An Associated Press analysis of traffic deaths and U.S. census data in six drilling states shows that in some places, fatalities have more than quadrupled since 2004 - a period when most American roads have become much safer even as the population has grown.

"We are just so swamped," said Sheriff Dwayne Villanueva of Karnes County, Texas, where authorities have been overwhelmed by the surge in serious accidents.

The industry acknowledges the problem, and traffic agencies and oil companies say they are taking steps to improve safety. But no one imagines that the risks will be eliminated quickly or easily.

[safeinOhio]

1. Good point.

I saw in a local paper that a mega-dairy farm is volunteering to help repair the local road they screwed up and are now having trouble getting down.

[Champion Jack]

2. they are destroying the roads around here and wreaking havoc on car suspensions and wheels and tires

which, by the way, no oil or gas company has offered to repair