Old or young, male or female, we’re all guilty of it–distracted driving. According to the government-run website Distraction.gov, distracted driving increases the likelihood of getting into an auto accident by three times. And, with no end in sight for this troubling trend, we at Avondale Nissan thought we’d do our part by dropping some knowledge on distracted driving for our Phoenix-area friends and family. All facts and figures come courtesy of Distraction.gov, which we encourage all to visit.
So what is distracted driving? While most of the blame is rightly aimed at cell phone usage, texting and talking on the phone isn’t the only culprit here. Distracted driving also includes such ill-advised acts such as eating, interacting with other passengers, messing with your radio and grooming. In short, any activity that takes away from a driver’s ability to safely drive without occupying his or her attention is considered to create a distracted driver.
In 2012, an estimated 421,000 people were injured in accidents involving a distracted driver, which was a 9% increase from the year before.
A troubling number of these accidents involve young people. Drivers in their 20s made up for 27% of these accidents all by themselves, and 10% of drivers under the age of 20 in fatal crashes we identified to be distracted at the time of the accident. Additionally, 25% of teens respond to a text message at least once each and every time they drive.
Approximately 660,000 drivers are using electronic devices–phones, navigation systems, etc.–at any given moment. So, with estimates that a driver’s eyes are off the road for five seconds while texting, this makes for a terrifying reality.
So what’s the best way to combat this frightening phenomenon? Fortunately, the answer isn’t complicated; all we need to do is educate our drivers to the dangers created by distracted driving. Parents not only should set specific parameters for the young drivers in their homes, they should also do their best to practice what they preach. At Avondale Nissan, we are in full support of distracted driving awareness, and encourage everyone to educate themselves on what has become a hot-button issue in the automotive community.
Safe travels, everyone!
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