New Haven Auto Accident Risk Increased With Cell Phone Use 2-8x

Whether you are on Crown Street, Merritt Parkway, or Interstate 91, using your Smartphone while you drive isn’t the smartest thing to do. Not only is it against Connecticut law to operate a mobile device while operating your vehicle, drivers, who text or surf the Internet on are 2-8 times likely to be involved in a New Haven auto accident.  People who talk and drive increase their risk up to four times, according to a report from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

This latest report updates previous research, some of which is now more than 10 years old and dates back to the days when drivers used simple flip phones to only make calls. Today, modern technology and smartphones are changing the way drivers interact with devices and ultimate affect roadway safety.

The NHTSA reported 3,450 distraction-related deaths occurred in 2016. In Connecticut during that same year, there were 12 fatalities and more than 3,200 injuries, according to the UCONN Crash Data Repository, a database that provides crash information collected by state and local police.

While more than two in three drivers personally consider it’s unacceptable to talk on cellphones while driving, they do so anyway, reports the Foundation’s Traffic Safety Culture Index. Yet, one in three drivers says they talk on their phones while driving regularly.

This newest study investigated the relationship between Smartphone use and crash risk, using data from a sample of more than 3,500 drivers, whose driving was monitored for several months as they drove in their own vehicles.

If you or a loved one was injured in a New Haven auto accident, contact our firm immediately. Our team of experienced New Haven auto accident attorneys has been defending the rights of New Haven’s injured for nearly 60 years.