When drivers fail to obey traffic laws and pay attention, they put lives at risk and must be held accountable if they are responsible for causing an accident. In Monmouth, New Jersey, those who drive while distracted increase the likelihood of car accidents claiming more lives. As a result, people need to remember the importance of being responsible and paying attention every time they get behind the wheel.
From taking a “selfie” to eating food, changing the radio station or using a map, there are all sorts of reasons why drivers get distracted. Sadly, these distractions cause crashes that sometimes result in serious injuries and death. Distraction.gov provides a plethora of information and startling statistics on distracted driving and car accidents, such as pointing out how hand-held phones make an accident three times more likely to occur. Other surprising facts include:
- People usually look away from the road for five seconds when texting, long enough to drive across a football field when travelling at 55 miles per hour
- It is estimated that in the U.S., roughly 660,00 people are using an electronic device while driving during the day
- Over one-quarter of distracted drivers in deadly wrecks were in their 20s
- Using a headset is not significantly safer than using a hand-held cell phone
The Governors Highway Safety Association published useful information on their website that pertains to distracted driving, from campaigns and legislation they support to the relationship between distracted drivers and car accidents. They also explored how difficult it can be to enforce laws geared towards preventing distracted driving. For example, in states that ban texting but let drivers use hand-held devices, an individual can claim they were simply entering a phone number and not texting if an officer pulls them over.
The association also released a report that shows just how dangerous distracted driving is. In addition to looking at how distractions impact someone’s ability to drive, the report found that drivers are believed to be distracted up to half of the time and that distractions play a role in 15 to 25 percent of accidents. These findings highlight how imperative it is to increase driver awareness and stop distracted driving.
