Each year, thousands of people lose their lives on America’s roadways because a driver is distracted from driving; April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.
More than 3,000 people lose their lives and nearly 300,000 are injured every year because of a driver becoming distracted.
It may be the driver themself, their occupants or others on the roadway – including bicyclists and pedestrians – whose lives are taken or forever changed due to a few seconds of inattention.
According to Kansas Department of Transportation crash data, in 2024, there were nearly 14,000 distracted-driving-related crashes on Kansas roadways, resulting in 71 deaths and 454 serious injuries. Among the people harmed in these crashes, 1 in 5 died, and when fatalities and serious injuries are combined, approximately 1 in 4 people were killed or suffered a life-altering injury.
Just last month, a Kansas Senate bill introduced by AAA Kansas that prohibits handheld mobile phone use in school zones (during designated hours) and road construction zones (when workers are present) passed both the Kansas Senate and Kansas House of Representatives.
A report by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that most drivers perceived scrolling through social media (97%), texting/emailing (94%), or reading on a handheld cell phone (90%) while driving as being extremely or very dangerous. Despite this, many drivers reported texting (28%), reading messages (37%), or talking on a hand-held phone (36%) while driving. Most (59%) used hands-free technology, while only 11% reported scrolling through social media while driving in the past month.
