The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) works to reduce the occurrence of distracted driving and raise awareness of its dangers. This risky behavior poses a danger to vehicle occupants as well as pedestrians and bicyclists. Driver distraction is a specific type of driver inattention. Distraction occurs when drivers divert their attention from the driving task to focus on some other activity. Often discussions regarding distracted driving center around cell phone use and texting, but distracted driving also includes other activities such as eating, talking to other passengers, or adjusting the radio or climate controls. A distraction-affected crash is any crash in which a driver was identified as distracted at the time of the crash. * Nine percent of fatal crashes in 2017 were reported as distraction-affected crashes. * In 2017 there were 3,166 people killed in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers. * Six percent of all drivers involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted at the time of the crashes. Eight percent 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. * In 2017 there were 599 nonoccupants (pedestrians, bicyclists, and others) killed in distraction-affected crashes. (Author/publisher)
Distracted driving in fatal crashes, 2017.
20200383 ST [electronic version only]
Washington, D.C., U.S. Department of Transportation DOT, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA, National Center for Statistics & Analysis NCSA, 2019, 5 p.; NHTSA Traffic Safety Facts Research Note ; April 2019 / DOT HS 812 700