America Illegal street racing Up 75% and New Zealand 625000 races

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American illegal street racing is up 75% and New Zealand has 625,000 illegal races in a year!

Source: Research Department
Release Date: February 08, 2010
Update / Revision: N/A

It is often challenging to cite illegal street racing statistics that are derived from official sources such as NHSTA or law enforcement. At the core of the problem is an inability for government agencies to agree on what illegal street racing is, how to identify it, and the best method of citing/documenting it. As a result Evo Street Racers has worked very hard on not only educating official agencies but also developing our own proven system of tracking incidence. (Incidence is defined as verified illegal street racing accidents, citations, and reports by law enforcement, media, and secondhand sources (witnesses with video tapes)

Evo’s research system has utilized similar tracking means every year with a consistent definition of illegal street racing,proven methods of identifying the act, and acceptable method of documentation. As a result we can create composite trend reports that highlight the current and future path of the problem with better-than-average accuracy. One such example is a report completed recently to where we witnessed a 75% increase in illegal street racing accidents (USA) in the month of January 2010 when compared to January 2009! Since year 2000 the illegal street racing problem has increasingly became worse with a sharp increase starting in 2008 (Global).

The obvious question relating to the trend is the sample group. How many incidents are being sampled? although Evo’s free database on topics relating to illegal street racing is the largest in the world the sample size is very small (only in the thousands) when compared to the actual amount of illegal street racing that occurs.

On the average Evo has been able to capture 7-10% of the reported incidents in America and globally has captured less than 1%. When one considers that the majority of illegal street racing goes unreported to the police/media the huge scope of the problem begins to be understood. Law enforcement numbers range on the amount of illegal street races that go unreported (no citation written) from 1 citation per 100 illegal races to the high end of 1 citation per 500 illegal races. Based on the geographic location we believe the number to be closer to 1 citation per 300 races. (Often these traffic tickets cite the person for reckless endangerment with the comments section reporting an illegal street race. Most law enforcement agencies do not have the option to cite a person for an illegal street race.)

One great example highlighting the challenge in capturing reported incidents is found in the country of New Zealand. According to the Dominion Post, a large newspaper in New Zealand, their official sources indicated that nationally more than 2000 cars were impounded for illegal street racing. Evo Street Racers has been able to gather information on less than 100 of these incidents or 5%. Most illegal street racing occurs in pairs, therefore 2000 car impounded at a rate of 75% in pairs would result in 1250 races. On the lower end, 1 of 100 races results in a citation; therefore, the country would be looking at an estimated 125,000 illegal races a year, or 342 illegal races a day. On the higher end, 1 of 500 races results in a citation would result in an estimated 625,000 a year or 1712 illegal races a day.

342 to 1712 illegal races a day seem to be very high; however, is it really that high? Maintaining that 75% of races are between two people 342 race would involve 599 people and 1712 races would involve 2996 people a day. Official figures place 3,200,000 registered drivers in New Zealand; therefore, on the high end on any given day less than 1% of the population would illegal street race. Considering that the majority of illegal street racing is spontaneous red light to red light lasting as short as 30 seconds the amount of illegal races being discussed is easily attainable…and let us remember what “They” say…"It only takes one person to ruin it for the rest" and "There isn’t a man alive that hasn’t tried a burnout and hit the throttle on the 'open' road. "

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Should you be an illegal street racer looking for information on becoming a legal sanctioned motorsports racer, a concerned parent looking for additional information, or a government agency seeking a solution Evo Street Racers have free comprehensive plans to assist in reducing the problem with viable motorsport options.

Learn about Evo’s plan to reduce illegal street racing: Evolution Solution
Become a Member of Evo Street Racers
Become an Ambassador for Evo Street Racers

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