Distracted driving deaths are 100% avoidable
During the month of April, designated by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) as Distracted Driving Awareness Month, public health advocates, auto and road safety professionals, insurers and law enforcement officials have worked to educate motorists about the devastating effects of distracted driving (“Distracted driving mock crash staged at Patterson
Mill High School,” April 8). Unfortunately, recent statistics released by the Maryland Department of Motor Vehicles indicate that Maryland drivers continue to talk, text, and drive distracted. Maryland’s Highway Safety Office reports that 216 people died and 19,237 were injured in 2020 on Maryland roads because of distracted driving.
While a Road Safety Attitudes and Behavior Survey conducted for the Maryland Highway Safety Office showed a majority of Marylanders — 93% — think unsafe driving is a major problem. However, the survey also revealed that those same drivers are not willing to take responsibility and make changes to their own behavior: nearly 50% of respondents admitted to engaging in distracted driving behaviors behind the wheel, regardless of the potentially tragic consequences.
As the mother of three teenagers who will drive on Maryland roads, setting an example behind the wheel isn’t my choice — it is my personal responsibility. Exhibiting safe driving behaviors in front of younger passengers is vital to stopping the cycle of distracted driving as is communicating to my soon-to-be drivers what not to do behind the wheel.
Maryland laws are clear: Motorists are prohibited from using a cellphone without a hands-free device while operating a motor vehicle. Maryland texting laws prohibit a person from using a text messaging device to write, send, or read a text or electronic message while operating a motor vehicle in motion or in the travel portion of the roadway. Despite laws like these enacted in many U.S. states designed to reduce the use of devices for messaging or texting behind the wheel, cellphone use remains a significantly dangerous problem.
Distracted driving crashes and fatalities are a 100% avoidable danger. By perpetuating a culture that understands the realities of taking risks behind the wheel, we can create a generation of safer drivers and safer roads for everyone in Maryland.