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Unfortunately, these distractions—however innocent their intentions—lead to accidents. According to a recent survey by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), almost 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near crashes result from inattentive or distracted drivers within 3 seconds of the incident. The American Automobile Association (AAA) suggests that distracted driving accounts for 4,000 to 8,000 accidents per day.
While scanning newspaper headlines, applying make up and testing out all the features on your GPS all contribute to those stats, chatting it up on cell phones seems to attract the most attention. The act has become the bane of traffic safety advocates and the target of legislators and lawyers alike. Recently, a 19-year-old English woman was sentenced to four years in prison for hitting and killing a 64-year-old grandmother while sending text messages on her phone. In the 15 minutes leading up to the accident, she had apparently used her phone on nine separate occasions.
Talking on
the phone without hands-free equipment while driving is already illegal in Chicago, along with states like New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. California will join that list this year, and it’s been illegal in the U.K. since February.
We share this with you because we urge you to keep your eyes focused on the road ahead the next time you climb behind the wheel. Resist the urge to multi-task while driving and only use your cell phone if you have a hands-free setup. All it takes is a split second for you to be the reason traffic is backed up for miles on the Tri-State.