Millenials are the most distracted drivers

The cellphone generation is more likely to text and drive. 

It has become fashionable to blame Millenials for everything. Their spending patterns and life choices are indeed reshaping America, in both positive and negative ways.

The Millenial generation’s preoccupation with smartphones and social media has changed human interaction … and made our roads more dangerous. Texting while driving is a significant factor in the rise in fatal car accidents.

Millenial drivers putting others at risk

A survey by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that 88 percent of Millenial drivers (19 to 24 years old) confessed to risky driving behavior — texting while driving, speeding or running red lights — in the previous 30 days.

To be fair, the 19-24 age group of any generation is the most crash-prone. Young adults are more likely to engage in risky behavior, including reckless driving. And certainly Millenials are not the only distracted drivers – it’s also Soccer Mom, Sales Guy and Grandma Betty.

But the survey found a stark difference on the specific act of texting while driving. Of the Millennials surveyed, 59 percent admitted to sending or receiving text messages while driving in the past month, nearly twice the rate of other drivers. Millenials were also more likely to run a red light even if they could have stopped. Yikes!

No one can “safely” text and drive

People who grew up with smartphones may not perceive texting behind the wheel as risky, just as sprevious generations thought they were “fine” to drink and drive. Multiple studies have proved that texting while driving can be as dangerous as drunk driving, because it diverts the driver’s eyes, hands and attention, and increases reaction times in a crash situation.

Despite texting bans, fines and public safety campaigns, Millenials and other distracted drivers continue to pose a menace to society. It shouldn’t take a fatality or jail time to get the message across. Put down your own phone (for starters), set rules for your children and call out your friends and family members if you catch them texting while driving.