Here in San Diego California, it seems not one day goes by where I don’t hear of a motorcycle accident on the radio. Most of these motorcycle accidents occur during the morning or evening rush hours.
Considering the size and population of San Diego County, and the large motorcycling community, this information about daily motorcycle accidents should be expected. We have great motorcycle riding weather all year around and unfortunately some pretty congested roadways around town.
Personally, it seems that almost every time I go out for a ride I’m always seeing someone talking or texting while driving. Also, I’ve noticed a number of drivers on the highway cutting across two or more lanes because they seemingly just realized that they’re going to miss their exit. I’m not sure whether these drivers are being distracted by their smart phones or not, but I have a feeling that that could be the reason.
Motorcycle Accidents Smart Phones
It’s amazing that with Bluetooth technology built into cars for at least the last six years or more, there shouldn’t be that many drivers actually holding their phone with one hand or having the phone lie between their shoulder and head while going down the freeway at 65 miles an hour. Studies I’ve read suggest even having a Bluetooth equipped hands-free smart phone car may make talking on your smart phone while driving somewhat safer, but it is still more dangerous than if you weren’t using the smart phone while operating the vehicle.
After decades of a decline United State highway traffic accidents, they have now increased for two consecutive years in a row!
According to data released from the US Department of Transportation for National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in the last two years the United States saw traffic fatalities jumped by over 14%! Last year alone, more than 100 people a day died in traffic accidents in the USA! Also, last year over 5900 pedestrians were killed by vehicles in the USA. For the last two years pedestrian fatalities have increased by 22%!
If we focus our attention on just motorcycle accidents, the latest data from the national Highway traffic safety administration shows that motorcycle fatalities for the 2014 through 2016 period, increased by 15.1%!
Motorcycle Accidents Smart Phones
Many believe that the government’s figures are not accurate when it comes to pinpointing the cause to smart phones. This belief is backed up by a nonprofit study done by the national safety Council. This study found that only about half the vehicle fatalities from known smart phone use were actually coded as such in the data from the national Highway traffic safety administration. In other words what they’re saying, is that the government’s own data as it relates to distracted related vehicle deaths, is way too low!
Another study involving 3 million people found that drivers were using their cell phones on approximately 88% of their vehicle trips.
An explanation for why the government’s own data is way too low on smart phone related vehicle fatalities could be the fact that the government gets its data from each individual state. Only 11 states have a place on their accident forms for police to check off that the accident could have been caused by mobile phone use.
Keeping in mind that the majority of states did not have a place for the police to check off mobile phones or smart phones could have been a contributing factor, the government data for 2015 shows that there were 448 vehicle fatalities in the country.
In Tennessee, which has a very thorough accident reporting form, and the place for related smart phone use as a contributing factor, their data for 2015 showed there were 84 smart phone related vehicle fatalities in the state that year. This shows in the state of Tennessee, with just 2% of the country’s population, accounted for 19% of phone related vehicle fatalities in the entire country in 2015! By having a place on the form for the police to indicate that their belief that the underlying cause of the vehicle fatality could have been or was phone related, drastically changes the percentages of accidents attributed to smart phone use while operating a vehicle.
As motorcycle riders, we all know we are exposed to greater injury and death as compared to an automobile driver. Did you know that motorcyclist deaths occurred 27 times more frequently than fatalities in other vehicles, based on 2014 fatal crash data? Also, motorcyclists 6 times as likely to be injured as compared to automobile drivers and passengers. How many of us actually realize that in the last few years our chances of getting into a motorcycle accident that ends in death for the rider and/or passenger has jumped by double digits? With the above data it seems clear that motorcycle riders are in increased peril due to smart phone usage in the vehicles sharing the road with us!
Motorcycle Accidents Smart Phones – prologue:
As of July 2012, talking on a hand-held cell phone was prohibited in 10 States (California, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Washington, and West Virginia) and the District of Columbia (GHSA, 2012b; IIHS, 2012b). With the exception of Maryland, the cell phone bans in each of these States are primary laws. In addition, several local jurisdictions such as Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Chicago, Illinois, and Cheyenne, Wyoming, have enacted their own restrictions on cell phones. At present, no State restricts hands-free phone use for all drivers, although Alaska considered such legislation in 2011 (NCSL, 2012).
A number of States have recently passed, or are currently considering, laws that would prohibit text messaging while driving. As of July 2012, 39 States and the District of Columbia prohibit text messaging for all drivers (GHSA, 2012b; IIHS, 2012b). NHTSA has prepared a sample bill to assist States in crafting new legislation to prohibit texting while driving (NHTSA, 2010c)
It’s amazing that with Bluetooth technology built into cars for at least the last six years or more, there shouldn’t be that many drivers actually holding their phone with one hand or having the phone lie between their shoulder and head while going down the freeway at 65 miles an hour. Studies I’ve read suggest even having a Bluetooth equipped hands-free smart phone car may make talking on your smart phone while driving somewhat safer, but it is still more dangerous than if you weren’t using the smart phone while operating the vehicle.
As motorcycle riders, we all know we are exposed to greater injury and death as compared to an automobile driver. Did you know that motorcyclist deaths occurred 27 times more frequently than fatalities in other vehicles, based on 2014 fatal crash data? Also, motorcyclists 6 times as likely to be injured as compared to automobile drivers and passengers. How many of us actually realize that in the last few years our chances of getting into a motorcycle accident that ends in death for the rider and/or passenger has jumped by double digits? With the above data it seems clear that motorcycle riders are in increased peril due to smart phone usage in the vehicles sharing the road with us!
