Distracted driving kills. It’s a simple fact, yet getting people to pay attention is not as easy as stating the facts – more than 3,000 people died in the US in 2020 as a result of distracted driving-caused car crashes. As a law enforcement professional, it is your job to encourage smart actions to avoid distracted driving. And it’s Kustom Signals’ job to provide law enforcement personnel with the tools to be more efficient and successful in doing your job. Here are some ways LIDAR is limiting distracted driving, as well as stats you can use to educate on distracted driving.
Changing the Social Norm
What is distracted driving? Anytime a driver isn’t paying attention to the road or not looking directly ahead of their vehicle, they are most likely distracted. Distracted driving results in drivers not seeing road hazards and being unable to make timely braking and veering responses.
Two major associations are currently working on changing the cultural standard regarding distracted driving incidents. The automobile manufacturer, General Motors (GM), and the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) in Washington, D.C. have been focused on the research behind distracted driving.
Damages Caused by Distracted Drivers
According to this article on distracted driving, “Distracted Driving: GHSA, GM Release New Report Calling for a Culture Change”, the damage from distracted driving starts with at least 400,000 people injured in driving crashes each year. Fifty-one percent of drivers admit to texting or emailing while driving by themselves. According to the report released by these two associations, the goal is to make distracted driving completely unacceptable. Drivers who are distracted lead to costly and deadly road dangers for everyone in their path, including themselves.
Drivers are distracted in a number of ways. They may be talking to someone else in the vehicle, or with someone using a hands-free cell phone. Voice-activated features can also be a distraction – as can daydreaming in general. Having your hands or eyes off of the wheel is grounds for a distracting event.
The state of handheld and hands-free devices for drivers focuses on:
- Manual cell phone use
- Visible manipulation of handheld devices
- Cell phone headset use
Most notably, less than 1 percent of drivers use a visible headset for cell phone use. The manipulation of handheld devices is on the rise, while handheld cell phone use is declining as of 2020.
How to Limit Distracted Driving
Public education, youth engagement, and community programs dedicated to learning about the dangers of distracted driving are key to local change. Community leaders also need to admit this is a safety challenge and focus on improving safe driving behaviors.
Other recommendations to limit distracted driving include conducting road checks and monitoring for drivers who are not driving safely. Simply put, finding those drivers who are putting their lives and the lives of others in danger because of their behavior is the best way to make a difference. Using radar detectors and LIDAR devices for monitoring such behavior is effective and legal for enforcement officers.
Documenting Distracted Driving Behavior
In order to stop people from distracted driving, you need to be in a position to see this behavior in action. Handheld LIDAR devices can be combined with camera imaging, like the Kustom Signals LaserCam 4, to make the best tools for law enforcement to do this job. Spotting the driver who is distracted is one thing. Recording them doing the behavior on camera for the court record is a whole new ballgame.
This fourth-generation handheld video LIDAR is a device that can be used for detecting and recording distracted behavior. Using the LaserCam 4 to capture evidence for the courts to support distracted driving tickets will help to curb this dangerous behavior.
Invest in LaserCam 4 Handheld LIDAR Detectors
Choose our LaserCam 4 to use for recording video evidence of distracted driving, like using cell phones, etc. This is a high-performance photo and video police LIDAR device is a solid investment in enhancing the effectiveness of your department. Request a quote to learn more.