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By Jarome Gautreaux
Owner/Partner

A study done by a tech company last month has ranked Georgia as the seventh most distracted state in the US when it comes to driving. The family networking app, Life360, has stated that Georgia residents use their cellphones on the road 20% more often than the typical US driver. Life360 is an app that lets families share location data with each other. There are over 50 million registered users. In a study of the app’s usage, the company found that Atlanta drivers were using their phones at an average amount of 2.73 times per trip.

Distracted Driving in Georgia and Nationwide

According to a news report, a new study suggests that pedestrian death in the United States has increased a total of 11% last year. This was the largest increase in the past 40 years that the records have been kept. Even the year prior held a 9.5% increase. The study claims that that the primary contributing factor in these accidents causing pedestrian deaths was cell phone usage. Although other factors such as population growth, time spent on the road, and mile walked are contributing factors, cell phone use provided the most correlation.

Nationally, the U.S. Department of Transportation has also revealed that the rate of drivers using their phones while behind the wheel has more than doubled since 2009, with the rates of cell phone usage quadrupling for younger drivers. Another contributing factor in the study was the phasing out of flip phones, and the introduction of the smartphone. The smartphone is also much more capable than the standard flip phone, especially when it comes to app usage. These can be significantly distracting and can contribute to an accident.

Georgia Southern University has planned to take a strong stance against distracted driving. In March, the Bulloch County Sheriff’s Officer reported over 125 traffics stops related to distracted driving. While the University was not directly involved in these stops, the Public Safety office has been inspired by this to take a stance against distracted driving on the bounds of its campus. The Officers for the University plan to launch an initiative on the campus that keeps a watchful eye out for the signs of distracted driving, such as failure to maintain lanes, driving at erratic speeds, or remaining stopped at lights for too long.

Distracted driving can cause serious accidents, so it is no surprise that officers are trying to crack down to reduce and deter this type of behavior. Accidents involving distracted driving can lead to serious injuries, or worse. In addition, distracted driving shows an obvious lack of concern for oneself and others on the road. In court, a victim of a distracted driving accident may claim that the distracted driver was negligent on the road, and can be entitled to compensation. If you or your loved one has been injured, contact the Gautreaux Law firm today.

About the Author
Jarome Gautreaux is a personal injury trial lawyer. He represents people who have been seriously injured, as well as the families of people killed because of carelessness or negligence. For over 20 years, he has successfully recovered more than 100 million dollars in a variety of Macon personal injury cases. Jarome’s reputation for client focus and case success has led to other lawyers requesting his assistance with complex personal injury litigation. What drives Jarome every day is his strong belief that the amount of money someone has should not dictate the justice they receive. It is for this reason that he has never worked for corporations, insurance companies, or other interest groups. Instead, he thrives on helping the people who need it most- people who have suffered at the hands of others and deserve compensation.