For several years, the influential alliance known as the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates) has released an annual report on the status of state highway safety laws. This alliance of medical, public health, consumer and safety experts chooses to collaborate in order to advance an agenda of preventing car accidents and making highways all across the nation safer than they have ever been before.

This year’s Roadmap of State Highway Safety Laws has just been published. The study breaks down each state’s highway safety laws into a variety of categories and rates how each state is doing in regards to preventing accidents and injuries in regards to these categories. The Advocates then give each state an overall highway safety law rating based on the aggregate of the information compiled.

Each state is given a green, yellow or red overall rating. Green indicates that the state is doing a good job of embracing a variety of safety laws designed to prevent accidents and injuries. Yellow indicates that the state’s laws are in need of improvement. Red indicates that the state’s laws are in need of serious reform.

Montana has received a “red” rating from the Advocates. In all, the organization recommends that Montana should adopt nine additional laws in order to better protect its residents. Among these laws are several reforms to the state’s graduated drivers’ license program and text messaging restrictions for all motorists. Interested Montana residents can check out the report in its entirety by visiting the organization’s website.

Source: Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, “Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety releases the 2014 Roadmap to State Highway Safety Laws,” Jan. 22, 2014