Eyes on the Road, Hands on the Wheel
U DRIVE. U TEXT. U PAY
National Enforcement Mobilization
October 5-12, 2020
Distracted driving has become a national epidemic - endangering passengers, adjacent vehicle occupants, motorcyclists, bicyclists, and pedestrians. While distracted driving can take many other forms - adjusting the radio, putting on makeup, eating, or interacting with other passengers - texting has become one of the most common, pervasive forms of distracted driving, and too many drivers are succumbing to this deadly, and often illegal, habit.
In 2018, there were 2,841 people killed and an estimated 400,000 injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers. Distracted driving is an especially problematic trend among younger drivers. In fact, 8% of drivers 15 to 19 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.
One Text Or Call Could Wreck It All
While those numbers may sound like just statistics, they’re anything but. They could be parents, children, neighbors and friends from right here in Kentucky. There are too many sad tales of deaths and injuries that could have been prevented had drivers been paying attention to the road instead of someone or something else.
So, why do so many people participate in this dangerous behavior? With more technology now than ever, driver distractions have risen to unprecedented levels. We live in a world where people expect instant, real-time information 24 hours a day, and those expectations don’t stop just because someone gets behind the wheel. Drivers still do not realize – or choose to ignore – the danger they create when they take their eyes off the road, their hands off the wheel, and their focus off driving.
Yes, this is a national problem, but it also affects us right here in Kentucky. No one is immune from the dangers of distracted driving. So please remember: One text or call could wreck it all.
