(Newswire.net — June 23, 2019) –Car accidents have always been a problem, but with advances in safety technology, better roads and infrastructure, and heightened public awareness, you would expect the rate of accidents to go down. In actuality, traffic-related deaths in the United States have been rising, and may continue to rise for the next several years.
There are many factors that could be responsible for this trend, as car accidents are rarely due to one factor. However, one of the most common motivators for a car accident is distracted driving—and it could be why traffic deaths are increasing.
Companies and lawmakers are fighting hard to improve this distracted driving epidemic, but before the problem is fully resolved, it’s likely to get worse.
How Distracted Driving Is Getting Worse
Distracted driving can unfold in a number of ways. It could be a person responding to a quick text message while on the highway, or someone trying to eat a sloppy breakfast sandwich on their way to work while juggling the steering wheel. It could even be noticing something flashy, like lights or another car, and taking your eyes off the road.
In any case, there are several reasons why distracted driving rates could continue to increase over the next several years:
- Technological advances. First and foremost, we have to address the development of new technology. Today, most people who drive a car regularly also have access to a smartphone, which grants access to text messages, phone calls, audio content, social media, and more. We’re constantly bombarded with incoming notifications and opportunities to take our eyes off the road, and those opportunities are only increasing. It’s becoming more and more normalized to spend most of your time with your eyes locked on a screen, and the number of devices and technologies with the potential to distract us is constantly rising. Technological advances aren’t likely to slow down anytime soon.
- Higher driving rates. The number of cars registered in the United States is consistently rising, and will continue to rise for many years to come. There are several factors for this, most of which will continue pushing that upward trajectory. Auto loans are easy to acquire and will likely get even easier to acquire in the near future as auto companies push for more sales. Cities and suburbs are constantly getting more drivable (despite pushes for more walkable and drivable cities), and on top of that, gas prices have been falling or remaining steadily low for years. More drivers on the road means more potential for distraction, and therefore higher accident rates.
- Illusory superiority. One of the fundamental facets of human nature is the illusory superiority bias, which causes us to believe we’re better than average at pretty much everything. Chances are, you think of yourself as a safer-than-average driver, as does everyone else in your life. Statistically, this can’t possibly be true, but it facilitates dangerous behavior. For example, you’re told all the time that texting and driving is a bad idea, but thanks to illusory superiority, you may believe that you’re somehow capable of texting while driving and still keeping your eyes on the road. This effect makes people more likely to engage in distracted behavior, even though new statistics are constantly emerging to prove how destructive they are.
Long-Term Changes
These factors will inevitably continue to contribute to distracted driving rates, but there are solutions in the works. Most of these are long-term fixes, designed to reduce the rates or destructive impact of distracted driving as much as possible, which means they may still take years to fully develop.
- Autonomous vehicles. Self-driving vehicles are hypothetically impossible to distract, capable of shuttling people to and from their destinations without distractions ever entering the equation. Semi-autonomous vehicles are already in circulation, but it may be years, or even decades before fully autonomous vehicles are available to consumers.
- Pedestrian-focused cities. Many urban areas pride themselves on being as walkable or as bikeable as possible, favoring pedestrians over cars. If this trend continues, it could reduce the number of cars on the road, and hopefully, the role of distracted driving on traffic fatalities.
- Better distracted driving laws. Some lawmakers are striving to cut back on distracted driving by pushing harsher and more impactful legislation. For example, they may ban using any mobile device while driving and enforce that law strictly.
- Device controls. Software developers may also be more active in preventing irresponsible use of devices, such as locking the app if the phone is traveling at high speeds.
Until these changes start to manifest, the burden of responsibility will continue to fall on individual drivers. Stay apprised of the dangers of distracted driving, and speak up if you see the people around you engaging in this unsafe behavior.