A Visual Guide: The Hazards of Being a Distracted Driver

American adults spend an average of 2 hours and 51 minutes a day on their phone while teenagers and young adults are on their phones 4 hours a day. This isn’t surprising considering how much distraction one smartphone can offer. With your phone, you can play games, listen to music, watch videos, read the articles, scroll through your social media feed, or send messages to while away the time.

There’s nothing wrong with using your phone. After all, smartphones were made to make people’s lives easier. But there’s a right place and a right time to be sending text messages, answering calls, or liking Instagram photos, and driving on the road is neither the right time nor the right place for using your phone.

Over 1.5 million car accidents in the United States are caused by cell phone use while driving. Texting while driving can be catastrophic as it takes away three things: your hands on the steering wheel, your eyes on the road, and your focus on driving.

If you think casually replying to a message while driving can’t be that dangerous, think again. Texting while driving causes five times more accidents than drunk driving does, and these accidents have led to more than 3,500 deaths each year.

 Despite the countless cautionary tales and state-issued bans on using handheld devices while driving, many people remain willfully ignorant of the dangers of distracted driving. If you’re not convinced yet, here’s an infographic to educate yourself and help keep you safe on the road. Remember that a small and simple gesture may spell the difference between life and death.