Data from over 65 million trips shows that distracted driving is increasing

Every April, Cambridge Mobile Telematics (CMT) participates in Distracted Driving Awareness Month by collecting and sharing critical insights on distracted driving. This year, CMT analyzed data from more than 65 million trips over six months on distracted driver behaviors. Through data and education, drivers can develop safer habits and make the roads safer.

Last year, the data showed that more than half of trips that result in a crash involve distraction and one in four crashes see the driver on their phones immediately before impact. This issue is deadly and growing – this year, the data showed that the percentage of trips that involved distraction increased to 36 percent, from 31 percent in 2017.

Additional data findings indicated that, nationally, 37% of distracted events occur at the speed of 30-50 mph. At 55 mph, you could go the length of a football field without looking at the road in only 2 seconds.

This year, we decided to dig into the driving habits in some of our most densely populated areas, assessing trips data from eight cities: Boston, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Houston, Philadelphia and San Francisco. Here are some specific findings:

• Houston had the highest level of trips with distractions, at 39.99 percent.
• In Washington D.C., drivers on average are distracted for 3.39 seconds per mile.
• In all cities, save New York and Los Angeles, over 30% of the drivers are distracted on at least half of their drives.

While this data continues to frighten – especially when you consider that the fact that we condone our phone addiction as a society, yet its ability to impair us when we drive is both irresponsible, reckless and expensive. But, there is hope! For example, CMT’s Drivewell app works with leading insurance providers to help change driver behavior – users show an average of 35 percent reduction in phone distraction. Drivers obviously want to stay safe and avoid collisions, and through increased attention to forming good habits, we can get there.

Ready to learn more about how smartphone-based telematics programs are helping drivers mitigate risky driving behavior? Visit cmtelematics.com.