Cars today have more features than ever, from touch screen technology and color changing lights to entertainment systems and smartphone connectivity to make your time in the car a little less boring.
But all of those distractions can lead to disaster when you're not paying attention to the road. According to AAA, 400,000 people are injured in distraction-related crashes every year.
Even worse, distracted driving crashes killed 3,522 people in the United States in 2021 – an average of 10 deaths per day. That's up 12% from the year before, when 3,138 people were killed.
"Distracted driving remains a growing traffic safety problem nationwide," AAA spokesperson Adrienne Woodland said in a statement. "Any distraction, whether it be texting or talking to a passenger, could be enough to cause a crash. AAA strongly urges drivers to focus on what's most important, which is the road in front of them."
According to AAA, the top three risky driver distractions are: Mobile phone use, in-vehicle technology, and passengers in the vehicles.
AAA Foundation's 2021 Traffic Safety Culture Index survey found that 33% of drivers admitted to driving while holding and talking on a cell phone at least once in the past 30 days. Another 33% admitted to reading a text or email on a cell phone while driving. And about 24% admitted to manually typing or sending a text message or email at least once in the past 30 days.
Even checking your phone at a stoplight can be risky. AAA research found that drivers can experience a "hangover effect," where the mind stays distracted for up to 27 seconds after using smartphones or voice-to-text vehicle infotainment systems to send text messages, make phone calls or update social media.
"The bottom line is, if your mind is not focused on driving, you're unable to properly react to what's happening on the road in front of you. That puts other drivers, bicyclists, and pedestrians at risk," Woodland said.
AAA offers these tips to avoid distracted driving:
• Put it away. Place your mobile device out of sight to prevent temptation.
Know where you’re going. If using a navigation system, program the destination before driving.
• Pull over. If you must call or text while on the road, pull off the road safely and stop first.
• Ask passengers for help. If riding with someone, seek their help to navigate, make a call or send a message.
• Be a good passenger. Speak out if the driver of your vehicle is distracted.
• Don't be a distraction. Avoid calling or texting others when you know they are driving.
• Activate "do not disturb." Setting up this feature on iPhone or Android device will prevent calls from coming in while you're driving.
• Everyone should avoid distractions while in traffic. Just as drivers need to pay attention, so do pedestrians and bicyclists. Never call, text or play games while walking or cycling.
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