Shot of a male using mobile phone while driving the car.
An analysis by Cambridge Mobile Telematics (CMT) found that distracted driving has spiked in the past few years, which appears to have contributed to a recent surge in traffic deaths. CMT, a company that analyzes driver behavior, concluded that U.S. drivers were 23% more distracted in 2022 than 2020, and that 34% of phone motion distraction happened above 50mph, the highest speed in three years. The study also found that speeding has increased since 2020.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released estimates in April, noting that road fatalities had decreased slightly from 2021 to 2022, but still remain above pre-pandemic levels. NHTSA estimates that 42,795 people died in traffic crashes in 2022 – 144 fewer people than 2021 – but still far higher than the 2019 estimates of 36,355 people who died from vehicles.
Safety advocates blame factors like heavier and more powerful new vehicles, street designs that prioritize speed over pedestrians, and the increased prevalence of tech tools integrated into vehicle dashboards that could distract motorists.
“Distracted driving, particularly smartphone screen interaction and phone handling, has long been known to increase cognitive load, impairing drivers’ ability to focus on the road… sending or receiving a text message takes a driver’s eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, equivalent to traveling the length of a football field at 55 mph blindfolded,” the Cambridge analysts wrote.
Source: Route Fifty
