Distracted Driving Prevention

What states are doing

• Many states have enacted laws to help prevent distracted driving. These include banning texting while driving, implementing hands-free laws, and limiting the number of young passengers who can ride with teen drivers.
  • The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tracks cell phone use laws and young passenger restrictions by state.
• While the effectiveness of cell phone and texting laws requires further study, high-visibility enforcement (HVE) efforts for distracted driving laws can be effective in reducing handheld cell phone use while driving. From 2010 to 2013, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) evaluated distracted driving HVE demonstration projects in four communities. These projects increased police enforcement of distracted driving laws and increased awareness of distracted driving using radio advertisements, news stories, and similar media. After the projects were complete, observed driver handheld cell phone use fell from:
  • 4.1% to 2.7% in the Sacramento Valley Region in California,1
  • 6.8% to 2.9% in Hartford, Connecticut,2
  • 4.5% to 3.0% in the state of Delaware1, and
  • 3.7% to 2.5% in Syracuse, New York.2

• Graduated driver licensing (GDL) is a system which helps new drivers gain experience under low-risk conditions by granting driving privileges in stages. Comprehensive GDL systems include five components34, one of which addresses distracted driving: the young passenger restriction.5 CDC's GDL Planning Guide can assist states in assessing, developing, and implementing actionable plans to strengthen their GDL systems.
• Some states have installed rumble strips on highways to alert drowsy, distracted, or otherwise inattentive drivers that they are about to go off the road. These rumble strips are effective at reducing certain types of crashes.5

What the Federal Government is doing

• In 2022, the U.S. Department of Transportation released the National Roadway Safety Strategy. Part of the strategy includes supporting vehicle technology systems that detect distracted driving.
• In 2021, Congress provided resources to add distracted driving awareness as part of driver's license exams as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
• Several federal regulations target distractions for workers:
  • In 2009, President Obama issued an Executive Order prohibiting federal employees from texting while driving government-owned vehicles or when driving privately owned vehicles on official government business.
  • In 2010, the Federal Railroad Administration banned cell phone and electronic device use for railroad operating employees on the job.
  • In 2010, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration banned commercial vehicle drivers from texting while driving.
  • In 2011, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration banned all hand-held cell phone use by commercial drivers and drivers carrying hazardous materials.
• NHTSA has issued voluntary guidelines to promote safety and discourage potential driver distraction associated with both original, in-vehicle and portable/aftermarket electronic devices in vehicles.