Wikipedia:WikiProject Highways/Automobile accidents and incidents
 | This is an essay on article content. It contains the advice and/or opinions of one or more WikiProjects on how the content policies may be interpreted within their area of interest. This information is not a formal Wikipedia policy or guideline, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. |
This essay includes generally accepted criteria for when to add mention of automobile accidents and incidents to articles about roads and highways.
Car accidents happen every day and occasionally, they result in injuries or worse. While all traffic deaths are tragedies, most deaths have little to do with the road itself. In addition, we simply cannot list every time a person dies on a roadway. By consensus this should not be used to determine whether a stand-alone article should exist or not. If an accident or incident meets the criteria for inclusion in a highway article it may also be notable enough for a stand-alone article, if it also meets the criteria provided by the general notability guideline, a notability of events guideline and a guide on the use of news reports.
Because this is an essay and not policy and also because it should not be applied to stand-alone accident articles, it is recommended that it not be cited at Articles for Deletion discussions for either keeping or deleting.
Reasons to not include
[edit]Accidents should not be mentioned in road articles solely because:
- The accident or incident resulted in deaths or injuries.
- The accident or incident was caused by a weather event.
- A large truck involved in the accident or incident spilled its cargo.
Reasons to possibly include
[edit]Care should be exercised when mentioning accidents or incidents when:
- The accident or incident received significant national or worldwide news coverage in more than one news cycle and is not related to a weather event.
- The accident or incident killed a notable person and the death is covered in a stand-alone article.
- The roadway was shut down for at least 48 hours, but no lasting damage was done to the road.
Reasons to include
[edit]Accidents and incidents on the road should only be included in road articles if:
- The accident or incident destroyed a portion of or necessitated a major redesign of the roadway.
- The accident or incident invoked a change in procedures, regulations or process that had a wide effect on the region's transportation policy
See also
[edit]- WP:GNG – the general notability guideline
- WP:EVENT – guideline on the notability of events
- WP:NOTNEWSPAPER – a guide on the use of news reports
- WP:SPECULATION – Wikipedia is not a crystal ball
- WP:AIRCRASH – a similar essay under WP:AVIATION