Drunk or distracted driver: who would you choose to drive you home? Choosing the drunk driver increases your chances of making it home alive.
Drunk drivers react 12% slower on the road while distracted drivers react 35% slower according to Tech Times.
Distracted Driver Facts
- Drivers who text are 23 times more likely to be involved in a car crash or near a car crash than their non-distracted counterparts.
- Distracted driving is the second-leading cause of car crash fatalities in BC.
- ICBC statistics indicate that 89 people die each year due to distracted driving.
- Distracted driving includes talking on cellphones, texting, programming a GPS manually, watching a DVD or operating a hand-held audio player.
Due to these startling statistics, the BC government, ICBC and police are joining forces to nab distracted drivers according to CBC News.
Younger drivers are the worst.
“We’re seeing that new generation, the younger generation, as not being able to give up their electronic devices,” Sgt. Dale Somerville of the B.C. Association of Police Chiefs told CBC News.
The current punishment for driving while distracted is a $167 fine and three penalty points. As the fines rack up, so do the costs. Two fines and six points costs $634.
If points continue to add up, the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles may issue a driving prohibition.
Should the current initiatives not improve driving habits, the province will consider further penalties.
For More Information:
- Distracted driving crackdown starts in BC, CBC News
- Texting is more dangerous than drugs, alcohol while driving: Study, Tech Times
