Utah Texting And Driving Statistics

The dangers of distracted driving have become a common topic of discussion on our media waves. It is now considered illegal to text and drive in many states; yet car crashes resulting from distracted driving continue to pile up.

• A study found that while driving between September 2010 and December 2011, among 8,947 teenagers aged 15-18 nationwide, an estimated 49 percent of boys admitted to texting while driving compared with 45 percent of girls. Texting also increased with age. Only 24 percent of 15-year-olds tapped out messages while driving, compared with 58 percent of 18-year-olds, the data showed. “A person who is texting can be as impaired as a driver who is legally drunk”. Analysis of 715 adults between the ages of 30 and 64 found that nearly two-thirds admitted to using a cell phone while driving with children in the car, and one-third acknowledged texting while driving.
• According to CDC, 31% of U.S. drivers ages 18-64 reported that they had read or sent text messages or email messages while driving at least once within the 30 days before they were surveyed.
•  In 2011, 3,331 people were killed in crashes involving a distracted driver, compared to 3,267 in 2010. An additional, 387,000 people were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving a distracted driver in 2011, compared to 416,000 people injured in 2010.
• In 2010, nearly one in five crashes (18%) in which someone was injured involved distracted driving.
•  In June 2011, more than 196 billion text messages were sent or received in the US, up nearly 50% from June 2009.
• Nearly half of all U.S. high school students aged 16 years or older text or email while driving.
• Students who text while driving are nearly twice as likely to ride with a driver who has been drinking and five times as likely to drink and drive than students who don’t text while driving
• More than 3,000 teens die annually from texting while driving, compared to about 2,700 for driving under the influence of alcohol, according to a study by Cohen Children’s Medical Center in New Hyde Park. Texting while driving has now surpassed drinking and driving as the leading cause of death among teens, according to a new study.
• A recent CDC study compared the percentage of distracted drivers in the United States and seven European countries: Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Overall, the study found that a higher percentage of U.S. drivers talked on the phone and read or sent emails or texts while driving than drivers in several other European countries.

GuardChild also presented these interesting statistics and information on texting and driving. These are:

• Of all the cell phone related tasks such as talking, dialing or reaching for the phone, texting while driving is considered the most dangerous.
• A driver dialing a cell phone is 2.8 times more likely to get into a crash as compared to a non-distracted driver.
• Despite the risks, majority of teen drivers ignore cell phone use while driving restrictions.

We cannot fathom why people continue to resist safety measures that are designed to save lives and prevent heart-breaking accidents. Good Guys Injury Law hopes that it will not be too late for a motorist to realize that distracted driving should be avoided at all costs.

To learn more, visit our “Texting and Driving” article.

Photo courtesy of terimakasih0 and Pixabay. The image is free for reuse.

 

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