This time of year many of us have extra tasks to complete with the holidays quickly approaching. If you’re also traveling, trying to multi-task when you’re behind the wheel might be tempting.
Distractions while driving come in three categories:
- Taking your eyes off the road
- Taking your hands off the wheel
- Taking your mind off the task of driving
Any one of these can be dangerous, but combining them significantly raises your chances of a bad outcome.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
- Eight percent of fatal crashes, 14 percent of injury crashes, and 13 percent of all police-reported motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2021 were reported as distraction-affected crashes.
- In 2021 there were 3,522 people killed and an estimated additional 362,415 people injured in motor vehicle traffic crashes involving distracted drivers.
- Five percent of all drivers involved in fatal traffic crashes in 2021 were reported as distracted at the time of the crashes. Seven percent of drivers 15 to 20 years old involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted. This age group has the largest proportion of drivers who were distracted at the time of the fatal crashes.
- In 2021 there were 644 nonoccupants (pedestrians, pedal cyclists, and others) killed in distraction-affected traffic crashes.
So far this year in Iowa, 337 people have been killed in traffic crashes. That’s an increase of seven since last Friday. In Iowa in 2022, there were 338 traffic-related deaths. To see statistics published daily by the Office of Driver Services, go to the daily fatality report at https://www.iowadot.gov/mvd/stats/daily.pdf