Distracted Driving Awareness Month 2023 - Adamson Ahdoot

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Distracted Driving Awareness Month 2023

May 8, 2023 María López Garcia
Home » Blog » Distracted Driving Awareness Month 2023

Car Distractions Cause at Least Nine Fatal Accidents a Day

Distracted driving is the cause of thousands of deaths and injuries each year. Unfortunately, many drivers are unaware of its dangers. This past April, for Distracted Driving Awareness Month 2023, several new reports have come to light revealing alarming data. Statistics released by state and national agencies show that one-quarter of all traffic fatalities are due to distracted driving.

When a car driver is involved in an accident due to distraction, he or she will be considered at fault. If you or a loved one has suffered an incident on the road at the hands of an irresponsible driver, keep reading this blog.

Distracted driving is responsible for thousands of fatalities and injuries each year.

What is Distracted Driving Awareness Month 2023?

Initially created by NHTSA in 2010, Distracted Driving Awareness Month was established to raise awareness of the dangers of distracted driving. But, what prompted Congress to pass a resolution to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving? The tragic accident of a nine-year-old girl.

The little girl was riding her bicycle home on the bike path when she was hit by an SUV that had drifted out of its lane due to inattention to the road. After the fatal incident, her mother, Shelley Forney, along with representative Betsy Markey, managed to give voice to a problem that remains latent today.

Now, on its 13th anniversary, NHTSA and other organizations such as the National Safety Council are continuing this enforcement campaign. The goal? To educate and try to raise awareness of the deadly consequences of this irresponsible habit.

More than 38,000 people have been killed by distracted driving since 2010.

Numerous Awareness Initiatives

Nationally, the best-known campaign is U Drive. U Text. U Pay, promoted by the NHTSA. While this action is focused on preventing any kind of distractions at the wheel, its main target is those drivers who drive on the road while using their cell phones. This initiative is motivated by the fact that this is the most widespread and at the same time the most dangerous distraction: driving with a cell phone causes visual, manual, auditory, and cognitive distractions.

On the other hand, certain campaigns have also been implemented at the state level to fight against this type of recklessness on the road. In the state of California, the OTS has launched several initiatives with the purpose of:

  • Decreasing the number of deaths related to drivers who have been distracted by calling, texting, or browsing on their cell phones.
  • Reducing the high number of collisions that cause thousands of injuries each year as a result of cell phone interaction.

In the Golden State, it is not allowed to operate any type of electronic device while driving on the road. To ward off the temptation to use a cell phone, the California Office of Highway Safety initiated Put Your Phone Down. Just Drive. And, because of the high rate of phone use among young Californians between the ages of 16 and 24, the state agency launched Silence the Distraction.

What Does Distracted Driving Mean?

Distracted driving is anything that takes the driver’s attention, care, and vigilance away from the activity of driving. Basically, it is any action that causes the driver to take his or her hands, eyes, or mind off the road.

Generally, distracted behavior can be classified into four types: visual, manual, auditory, and cognitive distractions. That is, averting the eyes or hands, or auditory or mental inattention.

There are Different Forms of Distracted Driving

Cell phone use is, of course, the most frequent form of distraction. It is estimated that more than 60% of young drivers use their cell phones constantly when they get into the vehicle. On the other hand, although it is not considered dangerous, communicating with other passengers is also a habit that affects inattention at the wheel. When talking and interacting with other people, drivers lose the ability to react by taking their eyes and hands off the steering wheel.

Other common cases among the population are eating and drinking. In fact, in 2021 a survey pointed out that more than half of the participants had acknowledged eating during a car trip. Unfortunately, this practice is up to three times more likely to result in a car crash.

Moreover, grooming while driving is also a widespread occurrence. It is believed that almost 7% of the population use the rearview mirror to apply make-up or brush their hair in the car. Other less frequent cases of distraction, but also present on the road, are: looking for objects in the purse or glove compartment, checking the radio, or smoking.

Distracted Driving Statistics

  • The risk of a collision or near-collision is 23.2 times higher when texting than when driving without distractions.
  • When dialing a phone number on a cell phone, the driver is 12 times more likely to have an accident.
  • Cell phone distractions are 7 times more likely to cause a rear-end collision.
  • A driver’s overall crash risk is nearly doubled while on the cell phone, both visually and manually.
  • Cell phone distractions increase the likelihood of a traffic accident by a factor of 3.

Injured by Distracted Driving in California? We Can Help

Warning drivers about the dangers of distracted driving has become routine. When you take these reckless actions, you not only put your own life at risk. You are also gambling with the lives of others. To honor Distracted Driving Awareness Month 2023, we at Adamson Ahdoot want to help. Our goal is clear: to raise awareness of the life-threatening nature of this practice.

It is increasingly common to be involved in an accident due to a distracted driver. For this very reason, we want to position ourselves as the most ideal choice for adequate legal representation. With over 100 years of combined legal experience, our team of attorneys can get you the right financial compensation.

Our bilingual team is used to handling all types of personal injury cases in California. Were you injured in an auto collision and need help? Do not hesitate to call us at (800) 310-1606. Contact one of our experts for more information about your case today.

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