Distracted Driving in 2024 [Traffic Safety Facts]

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration works to reduce the occurrence of distracted driving and raise awareness of its dangers. This risky driving behavior poses a danger not only to vehicle occupants but pedestrians and pedalcyclists as well. Driver distraction is a specific type of driver inattention that occurs when drivers divert attention from the driving task to focus on some other activity. Discussions regarding distracted driving often center around cellphones and texting, but distracted driving also includes eating, talking to passengers, adjusting the radio or climate controls, or adjusting other vehicle controls. A distraction-affected traffic crash is any traffic crash in which a driver was identified as distracted at the time of the crash.