5 Deadliest States For Distracted Driving
You might be guilty of it yourself.
Distractions, however brief, are almost impossible to ignore. That’s why states have had to crack down on distracted driving as cell phones have become ubiquitous over the course of time.
Despite the potential of being fined or worse, drivers just can’t help but look everywhere but the road in front of them, and the numbers show it.
According to MoneyGeek, these are the 5 worst states when it comes to distracted driving fatality rates per billion miles (DDFR, for our intents and purposes), with a side of distracted driving deaths (2018-2019):
5. Louisiana
Louisiana kicks off our list at the fifth spot with a 2.16 distracted driving fatality rate per billion miles and 219 distracted driving deaths. Note that the top 5 worst states all have rates higher than 2, and Louisiana is the first to breach that mark.
4. Hawaii
At the fourth spot is Hawaii, despite having a relatively low number of 49 distracted deaths, which had a 2.24 DDFR.
3. Kentucky
Kentucky likes this 3 spot, having been in it the year before. The 2.26 DDFR and 224 deaths for the state are especially interesting, considering that texting is banned for all drivers and handheld devices are banned from novice and school bus drivers.
2. Kansas
The Wheat State is the penultimate offender on this list, with a 2.42 DDFR and 155 distracted driving deaths, which is actually a reduction by 31. Kansas also has strict “no texting” laws for all drivers in place.
1. New Mexico
New Mexico tops the list for the second year in a row and does so with authority. With a whopping 4.83 DDFR and 266 deaths from distracted driving, it’s a wonder that New Mexico hasn’t banned cell phone usage for drivers.
With distracted driving (and cell phones) not going away anytime soon, the future may be one where driver fatigue, eye-tracking systems, and AI-enabled dash cams help eliminate this threat.
