This is the first post of a two part series in recognition of Distracted Driving Awareness Month, a national campaign against cell phone use while driving.

Cell phone use while driving is now being targeted by researchers, lawmakers, and law enforcement officials as one of the most important driving safety issues today, and for good reason.

If you’ve ever seen a driver drifting out of their lane while texting, or you’ve found yourself braking suddenly as traffic slows because you were distracted by your phone conversation, then you already know that driving distracted can be a hazard. But just how badly does it impair your driving performance, and how can you avoid the distraction?

This April, law enforcement agencies across the country are cracking down on drivers using cell phones as part of the national Distracted Driving Awareness Month campaign. With many police departments planning zero-tolerance enforcement of existing laws, this month is a great opportunity to kick your distracted driving habit once and for all.

Tips to Help You Stay Focused

Remove the Temptation

Make calls or send texts before you drive, and put your phone out of reach while you’re behind the wheel.

Take Advantage of Smartphone Apps

If you have trouble resisting the urge to use your phone, there are plenty of smartphone apps available to help.

• Many cell phone carriers have developed their own apps for their customers, including AT&T’s Drive Mode, Sprint’s Drive First, and T-Mobile’s Drive Smart.
• DriveSafe.ly is a free app for Blackberry, Android, and iPhone which will read your text messages out loud and send an automatic reply.
• SafeCell automatically activates when it detects movement faster than 5 MPH, intercepts text messages and calls, and sends an automatic reply. It’s available for iPhone and Android devices at a cost of $11.99 per year.
• TextNoMore is available for free on Blackberry and Android devices. The app turns off notifications for texts and calls, and sends an automatic text reply.

Be Aware of Current Laws

Be aware of current laws in the states and cities you plan to drive in.

Distracted driving is currently a hot topic for state legislators, and many states are passing updated laws. Distraction.gov, the official US government website for distracted driving awareness, provides an interactive map to help drivers review cell phone laws.

Create a Workplace Policy

Are you an employer? The National Safety Council provides resources for employers seeking help creating and implementing cell phone policies, and even offers a free seminar on building support for a cell phone policy in the workplace.

Notify Friends Ahead of Time

Let your friends and family know that you won’t be able to answer the phone while you are driving, and that you’ll return their text or call as soon as you can do so safely. Encourage them to do the same!

How Dangerous is Distracted Driving?

Besides preventing expensive tickets, saving your calls and texts for before and after you drive can help you avoid serious safety risks.

• Talking on a cell phone makes you four times more likely to crash, with no difference in crash risk between using hands-free and hand-held devices (Distraction.gov).
• Texting makes you 23 times more likely to crash. Text messaging takes your eyes off the road for 4.6 seconds on average. At 55 MPH, that means traveling the length of a football field without looking at the road (Distraction.gov).
• Using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37% compared to undistracted driving (Distraction.gov).
• Cell phone users’ reaction times are as slow as those of a drunk driver. A study by the University of Utah found that drivers using cell phones had reaction times as slow as those of a driver with a blood alcohol content of .08%, above the legal limit to drive in the United States (National Safety Council).

Looking for More Information?

The National Safety Council provides a detailed list of links to key research studies on distracted driving. SR22Insurance.net also provides a comprehensive list of government and privately-funded distracted driving studies.

Distraction.gov offers facts and statistics as well as ways for teens, parents, educators, and employers to take action.

Click here to learn how children can also cause distracted driving

Thanks to the various electronic gadgets available for drivers today, such as GPSs (global positioning systems), mobile phones, and other devices, driving is much simpler than it was years ago. On the other hand, modern technology has also been detrimental because it often causes distractibility while driving. As a result, more and more traffic accidents have occurred, with some of them involving fatalities.

Tragically, each day, about nine Americans lose their lives from distracted driving crashes, with over 1,000 more suffering from injuries. Simply put, distracted driving is driving while being preoccupied with other actions besides driving, such as talking on a cell phone, texting, and other distractions that can divert a driver’s focus away from the road. This growing problem has led to states enacting distracted driving laws. Here’s what you need to know about the three types of distracted driving laws and how an online traffic school is beneficial.

The Three Main Types of Distracted Driving Laws

• All Cell Phone Use—Although no state prohibits using cell phones while driving for all drivers, there are 38 states, along with D.C. (District of Columbia), that ban cell phone use by novice or beginning drivers. Also, D.C. and 20 states prohibit school bus drivers from using cell phones.
• Using Hand-held Mobile Phones—There are 15 states as well as D.C., Guam, Puerto, and the U.S. Virgin Islands that ban all drivers from the use of hand-held mobile phones when driving. Hand-held cell phone laws are known as primary enforcement laws and pertain to when a police officer is allowed to cite a driver for using hand-held cell phones when the driver is not breaking any other type of traffic law.
• Text Messaging While Driving—The state of Washington led the way in being the first state to pass a ban on texting while driving, which was in 2007. Today, 47 states and D.C., besides Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, have followed in Washington’s footsteps in prohibiting text messaging for all drivers. Two of the three states that don’t have a ban on all driver texting do prohibit novice drivers from text messaging.

Forms of Driving Distractions

There are three primary forms of driving distractions.

• Cognitive distraction refers to when drivers aren’t mentally focused on driving but are preoccupied with other concerns.
• Visual distractions are when drivers take their eyes off the road and look at distractions, such as a radio, or check to see if a child’s seat belt is buckled.
• Manual distractions occur when drivers remove one or both of their hands from the steering wheel for whatever reason, such as drinking, eating, or grabbing an item from a bag.

Top Causes of Distracted Driving Accidents

• The main cause of distracted driving is being lost in thought as this problem accounts for 62 percent of driving fatalities. This entails drivers allowing their minds to drift which can lead to a collision and result in death.
• Cell phone use, which causes 12 percent of deaths, is the second leading cause of traffic deaths linked with distracted vehicle accidents.
• The third top reason for drivers getting distracted is drivers gawking at an object, person, or happening that takes place outside of their cars. About 7 percent of accidents are caused by this problem.
• Additional causes include interactions with other occupants, using or trying to access items in a vehicle, eating or drinking, adjusting temperature controls, audio or other devices to operate a vehicle, moving objects, and lighting a cigarette.

Considerations and Warnings

Know the particular distracted driving laws that pertain to your state.

• Regardless of how long you’ve been driving, you should never get to the point where you feel too complacent or comfortable when behind the wheel. Complacency is the main reason for drivers thinking they can take their focus off the road.
• Fatigue, frustration, and rushing are common factors for drivers failing to focus on the road.
• Don’t drive and multitask.
• Even sending a simple, one-word, text message, such as “yes,” can put you at risk for accidents.
• Because texting while driving entails all three forms of driving distractions, it’s especially hazardous.
• Instead of setting up your GPS while driving, program it before leaving for your destination.

Sometimes, even the best drivers get traffic citations. To learn more about Traffic School Online and how our online traffic school can help in reducing insurance costs and dismissing traffic citations, please contact us.

The human brain is capable of keeping us alive through intense, extreme situations. From car wrecks and domestic abuse to stalking and shoot-outs, we can survive horrible things. However, just like physical trauma, mental and emotional trauma leaves wounds in the psyche. Sometimes they heal over, and you’d never even know. Other times, though, the trauma leaves deep, painful scars. When those scars interfere with your daily life, the condition is called post-traumatic stress disorder.

Isn’t PTSD Just For Soldiers?

When people think of post-traumatic stress disorder, they tend to think of returning combat veterans. Whether it’s pop culture depictions like what we saw in Rambo: First Blood, or nightly news stories about the numbers of soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan who are dealing with this condition, it’s something we think of as exclusive to warriors. Sometimes we admit that it may be common in police officers, as well. However, being in a war zone is just one instance where the constant tension, stress, and regular infusions of adrenaline can leave lasting effects on someone’s mind.

Because everyone reacts to trauma differently, it’s impossible to say what will, and what won’t, leave someone suffering from PTSD. For example, someone involved in a mass shooting might be able to put the incident behind them, once they’ve had some time to recover and recuperate. Other people, though, may never be able to go to the place where the incident happened, or even other places like it, without being triggered. Nightmares, flashbacks, severe anxiety, and intrusive thoughts regarding the trauma can all make leading a normal life extremely difficult.

Can Post Traumatic Stress (PTSD) Affect Driving?

Post-traumatic stress disorder takes many forms, and no two sufferers show the same symptoms or react the same way to the same stimuli. For example, one person who drove a convoy through a war zone might have no negative reactions to traffic when behind the wheel, but someone who was involved in a collision that resulted in the loss of a loved one might feel extreme distress whenever a truck sounds its horn.

If someone suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, they have to plan their entire lives around it. And, in some cases, they need to inform the Bureau of Motor Vehicles.

According to the Houston Chronicle, there are many states, such as Texas, Virginia, Florida, and Ohio which ask applicants if they suffer from any conditions, or take any forms of medication, that might interfere with their being able to drive safely. This is far from a universal requirement, though, and in many states where there is an attempt to classify some applicants as “mentally unwell” there have been legal challenges on the grounds that the questions are archaic and unnecessary.

Make Sure You’re Safe

Getting behind the wheel is always a risk. Whether you’re driving down to the corner store to pick up some snacks, or you’re on a cross-country road trip, there is always a chance that circumstances will pitch a fastball at your head. As a driver, you need to know whether you’re going to be able to react to that.

Having PTSD doesn’t mean you can’t drive, or even that you’re an unsafe driver. However, if your condition is triggered by driving, or you’re more likely to suffer from serious symptoms when you drive, then it’s important to know that and to gauge the risk appropriately. Suffering from this condition doesn’t prevent you from having a driver’s license, owning a car, or getting out on the highway. But you need to take responsibility and avoid that sort of situation, if you know there’s a high risk of incident when you drive.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), every day in the U.S. more than nine people are killed and more than 1,153 are injured in accidents that involve distracted driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is aiming to raise awareness about the detrimental consequences of driving while distracted in April. State highway patrols and organizations like the American Trucking Association have joined the NHTSA to spread the word throughout their networks. What do you need to know about distracted driving?

It’s About More than Phones

When we hear “distracted driving,” most of us immediately think of texting or talking on the phone while driving. While using your mobile device is extremely dangerous and accounts for many accidents, there are other ways to get distracted. The CDC groups distracted driving into these three categories:

1. Visual distraction involves taking your eyes off the road. This might be to look at something on the road, to reach for an item that has fallen on the floorboard, to look at a passenger in the back seat or even just to find another station on the radio.
2. Manual distraction means you’ve taken your hands off the wheel. Drivers often try to eat while steering with a leg or knee, or they attempt to use just one hand to drive while reaching for another item they feel they need at that moment.
3. Cognitive distraction means you’ve taken your mind off driving. The reasons for this distraction are endless. Daydreaming, thinking about an upsetting situation, planning out what to do when you get to work or get home, or any other distraction that makes you not pay attention to navigating your vehicle.

While distractions include many things other than phones and electronic devices, these items are so dangerous because they involve all three types of distraction. Using your phone, or even the navigation system that comes with your vehicle, requires that you take your eyes off the road, take your hands off the wheel, and take your mind off the task of driving. Even hands-free devices require your brain, creating a cognitive distraction.

Our Youth at Greater Risk

Studies from the CDC and the NHTSA point to the added risk for young people. The NHTSA found that 10 percent of all drivers aged 15 to 19 years old involved in fatal accidents were distracted at the time of the crash. This younger age group makes up the largest group of drivers who were distracted at the time of the crash.

What can be done?

Many states have enacted laws forbidding the use of electronic devices while driving. You can find distracted driving laws by state through the Governor’s Highway Safety Association. Additionally, organizations like the Federal Railroad Administration and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration have banned employees from using their electronic devices while driving. However, prosecuting offenders is difficult. No one is monitoring individual drivers. And, what about all the other distractions that are not illegal? Consider the following tips.

• Silence devices and put them out of reach before you begin driving. Check for messages once you arrive safely at your destination.
• Be a role model. Don’t let your children see you texting, talking on the phone, eating, or performing other unnecessary tasks while driving. Set a good example.
• Raise awareness. Talk to your teens about driver safety. Encourage them to not ride with others who drive while distracted.
• As a passenger, tell the driver not to use his or her electronic device and offer to make the call, send the text, select the music, or program the destination into the GPS for them.

A NHTSA survey found that at any given moment, 660,000 drivers are using electronic devices. Don’t let one of them be you.

This is the first post of a two part series on pedestrian road safety.

Since 1975, annual pedestrian fatalities have decreased by 41%, from about 7,000 down to less than 5,000 in 2011. But a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study released last month revealed that pedestrian fatalities are on the rise again. Total pedestrian fatalities increased by 3% in 2011, following a 4% increase in 2010.

Many are blaming the uptick in pedestrian deaths on people walking while distracted by cell phones and other mobile devices. But could distracted walking be a real traffic safety problem? How concerned do we actually need to be?

It Seems Ridiculous, But…

We’re used to seeing distracted walking mishaps in a humorous context, so it can be hard to imagine that this could be a real safety issue.

Pedestrians using cell phones have been caught on camera falling into fountains, stumbling onto subway tracks, and tripping down stairs. One Los Angeles texter even walked right up to a bear.

A series of public service announcements sponsored by StopTextsStopWrecks.org also treats distracted walking as an embarrassing but essentially harmless occurance, as a contrast to the deadly consequences of distracted driving. The ads warn that “Not everyone should text and walk,” but “No one should text and drive.”

But as silly as it might seem, studies show that distraction actually does have a real effect on how safely we walk.

Distraction Makes You Worse at Walking

Walking seems automatic and natural, but a study from Stony Brook University’s physical therapy department found that talking and texting on a cell phone actually made walking more difficult.

Participants in the study were shown a target on the floor, and were asked to walk to the target with their vision obstructed. A week later, the participants returned to complete the same task again. With their vision obstructed except for the ability to see a cell phone, one third completed the same task, one third completed the task while talking on the cell phone, and one third completed the task while texting.

Participants walked significantly more slowly and less accurately while using a cell phone to text or talk, indicating that brain areas controlling executive function and attention are just as necessary for walking as they are for driving.

More Distracted Walking Injuries Treated in Emergency Rooms

According to a study released this summer by the Ohio State University, more than 1,500 pedestrians were treated in emergency rooms for injuries related to cell phone use while walking in 2010 alone.

The number of such injuries has more than doubled since 2005, while overall pedestrian injuries actually dropped during this time.

Distracted pedestrians ages 16-25 were the most likely to be injured. Talking on the phone accounted for 69% of injuries, compared to texting, which only accounted for 9%. But researchers caution that this is because fewer pedestrians text while walking, not because this behavior is actually safer.

Impact and Solutions Not Yet Known

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, we still don’t know how distracted walking may be affecting overall crash statistics, and it’s not clear what solutions could be effective. While some education efforts have taken place, such programs have not yet been formally evaluated.

New York State Senator Carl Kruger has tried several times to ban the use of cell phones, iPods, and other mobile devices by pedestrians crossing the street in major cities. Arkansas State Senator Jimmy Jeffress introduced a bill in 2011 to prohibit pedestrians and cyclists from wearing headphones in both ears. Bicyclists are already banned from wearing headphones in both ears in California. But so far, no pedestrian-focused mobile device ban has become reality.

Even so, you can still take actions to stay safe. Keep your eyes off your mobile device and focused on your surroundings, especially near intersections. You can even consider finding a safe place to stop while you send your text message, or pausing your phone conversation while you cross the street.

Looking Beyond Distraction

While distracted walking has received a lot of attention recently, it’s not the only contributor to pedestrian fatalities or even the most serious factor.

In our next post, we’ll talk about other risk factors, including street design and alcohol involvement, plus what you can do to stay safe and make your community more pedestrian-friendly!