Local law enforcement officers in Dodge County issued 42 citations during the national U Drive. U Text. U Pay. high-visibility enforcement campaign that ran April 4-10. The campaign aimed to raise awareness of the dangers of distracted driving in Nebraska.
There were 3,924 drivers involved in distracted-driving crashes in Nebraska in 2020. A total of 233 people lost their lives in traffic crashes, and 19 of those fatalities were due to a distracted-driving crash. A total of 7,386 Nebraskans were seriously injured in a distracted-driving crash in the past five years.
According to NHTSA, between 2012 and 2019, 26,004 people died in crashes involving a distracted driver. While fatalities from motor-vehicle crashes decreased slightly from 2018, distraction-related fatalities increased by 10%. NHTSA also reported that the number of deaths linked to driver distraction was 3,142 nationwide, or almost 9% of all fatalities in 2019. This represents a 10% increase over the year 2018, or 284 more fatalities. The distraction figure was the largest increase in causes of traffic deaths reported for 2019.
“We are seeing far too many injuries and deaths associated with texting, messaging, and other forms of distracted driving,” Dodge County Sheriff Bob Reynolds said. “This campaign allowed us to really focus on this issue and to let drivers know that these behaviors are dangerous and illegal and will not be tolerated. The bottom line is this: Drivers’ hands should be on the wheel, their eyes should be on the road, and their concentration on the task of driving — always.”
While the high-visibility enforcement mobilization is over for now, the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office wants motorists to remember the dangers of texting and distracted driving beyond the enforcement effort.
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