Traffic Safety Facts
TRAFFIC SAFETY FACTS
Research Note
DOT HS 811 379
1
September 2010
Distracted Driving 2009
Highlights
In 2009, 5,474 people were killed on U.S. roadways and an estimated additional 448,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes that were reported to have involved distracted driving (FARS and GES). Of those people killed in distracted-driving-related crashes, 995 involved reports of a cell phone as a distraction (18% of fatalities in distraction-related crashes). Of those injured in distracted-driving-related crashes, 24,000 involved reports of a cell phone as a distraction (5% of injured people in distraction-related crashes). Sixteen percent of fatal crashes in 2009 involved reports of distracted driving. Twenty percent of injury crashes in 2009 involved reports of distracted driving. The age group with the greatest proportion of distracted drivers was the under-20 age group – 16 percent of all drivers younger than 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported to have been distracted while driving. Of those drivers involved in fatal crashes who were reportedly distracted, the 30- to 39-year-olds had the highest proportion of cell phone involvement. reported crashes that occur on the Nation’s roadways. The national estimates produced from GES data are based on a probability sample of crashes—not a census of all crashes— and hence are subject to sampling errors. As defined in the Overview of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Driver Distraction Program (DOT HS 811 299), “distraction” is a specific type of inattention that occurs when drivers divert their attention from the driving task to focus on some other activity instead. It is worth noting that distraction is a subset of inattention (which also includes fatigue, physical conditions of the driver, and emotional conditions of the driver). There has been a revision in NHTSA’s classification of distracted driving since the September 2009 Research Note, An Examination
Research Note
DOT HS 811 379
1
September 2010
Distracted Driving 2009
Highlights
In 2009, 5,474 people were killed on U.S. roadways and an estimated additional 448,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes that were reported to have involved distracted driving (FARS and GES). Of those people killed in distracted-driving-related crashes, 995 involved reports of a cell phone as a distraction (18% of fatalities in distraction-related crashes). Of those injured in distracted-driving-related crashes, 24,000 involved reports of a cell phone as a distraction (5% of injured people in distraction-related crashes). Sixteen percent of fatal crashes in 2009 involved reports of distracted driving. Twenty percent of injury crashes in 2009 involved reports of distracted driving. The age group with the greatest proportion of distracted drivers was the under-20 age group – 16 percent of all drivers younger than 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported to have been distracted while driving. Of those drivers involved in fatal crashes who were reportedly distracted, the 30- to 39-year-olds had the highest proportion of cell phone involvement. reported crashes that occur on the Nation’s roadways. The national estimates produced from GES data are based on a probability sample of crashes—not a census of all crashes— and hence are subject to sampling errors. As defined in the Overview of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Driver Distraction Program (DOT HS 811 299), “distraction” is a specific type of inattention that occurs when drivers divert their attention from the driving task to focus on some other activity instead. It is worth noting that distraction is a subset of inattention (which also includes fatigue, physical conditions of the driver, and emotional conditions of the driver). There has been a revision in NHTSA’s classification of distracted driving since the September 2009 Research Note, An Examination
References: Source: NCSA, FARS 2005-2008 (Final), 2009 (ARF); GES 2005-2009; PDO – Property Damage Only NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis