Investigating the factors behind cellphone-distracted crashes: Assessing injury severity among distracted drivers in states with and without cell phone bans

Introduction: Distracted driving, particularly due to cellphone usage, poses a serious threat to road safety by diverting drivers’ attention from the road to activities like calling, talking, and texting. This not only jeopardizes the safety of the drivers themselves but also puts other road users at risk. To address this issue, many states have enacted laws prohibiting cellphone use while driving. This study investigates the impact of such laws on the severity of driver injuries, focusing on a comparison between Connecticut and Florida. Method: The study examines four years of crash data, during which Connecticut banned handheld phone use while driving, while Florida allowed hands-free use and treated handheld phone use as a secondary offense. Using random parameter logit models with heterogeneity in means and variances, the analysis identified differences in risk factors contributing to driver injury severity in both states with and without a cellphone ban. Results: Despite variations in data collection methods and variables across states, the study aligns and compares commonly defined and measured variables from crash incidents. The analysis identified 26 statistically significant variables in both models, with only four variables consistently affecting all levels of driver injury severity. These common risk factors include the involvement of newer vehicles (less than five years old from the crash involvement), incidents involving shoulders, young drivers (under 30 years old), and seat belt usage. Conclusions/Practical Applications: The findings emphasize the importance of modern safety features in newer vehicles, improved roadside design, driver training, and law enforcement measures targeting younger drivers to promote seat belt usage and mitigate distracted driving risks.