Source: Heidi van der Westhuizen / Getty
April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month and ODOT is trying to slow the growing problem.
Matt Bruning, the Press Secretary for the Ohio Department of Transportation, calls distracted driving in Ohio an increasing problem. Data shows that the number of accidents related to distractions jumped every year over the past decade.
In 2005 the number of accidents linked to distracted driving was 13, 539, by 2015 that number ballooned to over 20,000.
“More than 20,000 in 2015 that’s a lot of crashes that are really all preventable. The solution is very easy, just drop the distraction when you’re driving,” said Bruning.
ODOT reports that there were 56 deaths related to distracted driving in 2015.
Bruning urges drivers to avoid texting, eating, adjusting the radio, using GPS, and even talking on the phone.
According to research from the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the percentage of women who drive holding their phone to their ear is higher than men.
source: Cleveland19.com
LOCAL NEWS: April Is Distracted Driving Awareness Month was originally published on praisecleveland.com
