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Distracted: Idaho earns dubious driver distinction

| August 3, 2021 1:00 AM

According to a July report by driver education firm Zutobi, Idaho is the 10th worst state for distracted drivers. And before you say, “those kids and their phones,” it’s not just young adults, and phones are just the beginning.

The U.S. Distracted Driving Report used 2019 data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (the latest available), which tracks causes of major accidents and related injuries and fatalities.

Generally, numbers have held steady since 2016, with distracted driving crashes resulting in an injury averaging about 285,000 across the nation each year. In 2019 those resulted in 424,000 injuries and 3,100 fatalities.

Idaho ranked 10th highest, with 14.9 percent of fatal crashes involving a distracted driver. New Mexico was the worst at 37.2 percent, and Mississippi the safest at only 2.2 percent.

Distracted driving is defined as driving while doing another activity that takes your attention away from driving. That lack of focus drastically increases the risk of an accident. At 100 mph, being distracted for just 1 second will mean the vehicle travels 146 feet, according to the report.

Five seconds of texting, according to the NHTSA, is the same as driving the length of a football field with your eyes closed.

While the most common cause of distracted driving involves the use of cellphones, averaging 13 percent of distracted driving causes nationwide (as much as anyone can prove it), that’s only a small part of our problem as modern drivers. Other common distractions connected to crashes include:

• Reading while driving

• Looking at external objects

• Applying makeup

• Eating

• Looking at or interacting with passengers

Nor can we blame it all on young drivers. Breaking down the NHTSA cellphone distraction data by age groups indicates that except for seniors, drivers of all ages are irresponsible with phones:

Age 15-20: 17 percent

21-24: 16 percent

25-34: 23 percent

35-44: 20 percent

45-54: 12 percent

55-64: 8 percent

65-74: 3 percent

Older than 74: 1 percent

Speaking on a mobile phone while driving increases crash risk 200 percent, while texting increases the crash risk by up to 600 percent.

If it’s so important it can’t wait, please pull over first. Better yet, toss the phone and purse in the back seat where you can’t reach them until you get there. It’s just not worth it.

See the report at: https://bit.ly/3il2Bnq

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Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network. Contact her at Sholeh@cdapress.com.