There are approximately 202 million licensed drivers in the US according to Statista.com. At any time of the day, there are about 660,000 drivers who use phones or other electronic devices while driving.
Despite warnings that it impairs your driving and can lead to accidents, injury or death, Americans continue to use electronic devices while driving. More than 3,300 people died in 2011 and nearly 40,000 people were injured in car crashes involving a distracted driver, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. While 10,228 deaths attributed to drunk driving accidents occurred in the same year.
Alcohol-related crashes accounted for 31% of all traffic fatalities in 2011. Distracted driving crashes accounted for approximately 10% of all traffic fatalities in 2011. The vast majority of that 10% was due to phone calls and text messages.
According to the quarterly magazine Human Factors (2005), motorists who hold cell phone conversations while driving are less capable than drunk drivers with blood alcohol levels greater than .08.
Scary, right? Particularly since 8% of adults in the US have a cell phone. With increased awareness of the potential of cell phones to distract drivers, many states, and even cities, are adopting laws that limit or restrict cell phone use while driving. However, we continue to see a high number of deaths due to both drunk driving and cell phone use.
Car and Driver Magazine conducted a comparison study to determine how dangerous using a cell phone while driving really is. Here’s what they did: equip a car with a red light to alert drivers to brake, the magazine tested how long it takes to hit the brakes when sober, when legally drunk to .08, when reading and sending emails, and when you send a text. The results are scary.
Driving at 70 miles per hour on a deserted airstrip, Car and Driver editor Eddie Alterman reacted and braked slower and slower as he emailed and texted.
The results:
Unpaired: 0.54 seconds to brake
Legally drunk: add 4 feet
Email reading: add 36 feet
Send a text message: add 70 feet
When he took the test to read emails or send text messages, he was just as slow to react. On average, it took her 4 times as long to hit the brakes.
Is texting and driving worse than drinking and driving? ABSOLUTELY! Here’s why, it’s our attitudes! Americans rightly consider drinking and driving to be wrong. But when it comes to texting and driving, we’re not nearly as outraged. Probably because so many of us have done it and still do (even though it’s banned in 14 states).
Unfortunately, it will likely take more accidents and more deaths to change that attitude. There are countless stories of teenagers being killed in accidents because the driver was texting while he was driving.
To prevent distracted driving, the US Department of Transportation recommends:
Turn off electronic devices and put them out of reach.
Set a good example for young drivers and talk to teens about responsible driving.
Talk when you are a passenger and the driver uses an electronic device or offer to make a call for the driver.
Always wear your seat belt. It could save your life.