A new report from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) and the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) Crash Outcomes Data Evaluation System (CODES) found that more than half of the state’s traffic crashes in 2022 were caused by distraction. Data from the Georgia Traffic Safety Fact Sheet (GTFS) “Distracted Driving – 2022” showed that 53 percent of all traffic crashes in Georgia involved at least one confirmed or suspected distracted driver.

Driver distraction occurs when the driver turns their attention away from driving and focuses on another activity. While most people associate phones with distracted driving, this behavior is defined as anything that visually, manually, or cognitively takes the driver’s concentration away from operating a motor vehicle. Phone use can involve several types of distraction. The 2023 Georgia Distracted Driving Observational Survey, conducted by Emory University’s Injury Prevention Research Center, found that at least one in five drivers in Georgia experienced some form of distraction.

Data in the GTSF report shows that distracted driving poses a threat to public safety. More than three-quarters of all distraction-related crashes in Georgia in 2022 involved at least one other vehicle or non-motorist in addition to the distracted driver, and 13 percent of those killed or seriously injured in a confirmed distraction-related crash were pedestrians or bicyclists.

According to the World Health Organization, “Drivers using a mobile phone are about four times more likely to be involved in an accident than drivers who do not use a mobile phone. Using a phone while driving impairs driver reaction time (particularly braking reaction time and response to traffic signals).”

“Distracted driving remains a serious danger for everyone, and this report shows how important it is to focus on driving and not on your smartphone or anything else that takes your attention off the road,” said Allen Poole, director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. “Everyone thinks they can text while driving, but the reality is we all make mistakes, and one mistake behind the wheel can cost you or someone else your life.”

Since Georgia’s hands-free law went into effect on July 1, 2018, the number of distracted driving convictions processed by the Department of Driver Services (DDS) increased 5.5-fold in the first 18 months. In 2022, there were nearly 49,000 distracted driving convictions.

Drivers ages 15 to 24 made up only 15% of all licensed drivers in the state in 2022, but were involved in 26% of all distracted driving car crashes, and nearly a third of all distracted driving tickets in 2022 were issued to drivers in this age group.

Georgia’s hands-free law prohibits drivers from holding or holding a wireless telecommunications device or standalone electronic device while driving. This includes texting, emailing, surfing the Internet, or using social media while driving.

The GTSF Distracted Driver 2022 Fact Sheet report contains information from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) crash data, modified by the Department of Public Health (DPH) Crash Outcomes Data Evaluation System (CODES) and the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS).

Visit www.gahighwaysafety.org to read the full GTSF Distracted Driving-2022 report and other GTSF fact sheets.