Study: Older drivers in Georgia may be worse at texting and driving

A new study found that older drivers may be worse at texting behind the wheel than younger and more inexperienced drivers.

Many might assume that younger drivers in Georgia, particularly those in their teenage years, are much worse at texting and driving than older and more experienced drivers. However, a new study reveals that this distracted driving activity may actually put older drivers at a higher risk of causing car wrecks that result in serious injuries or death than those in younger age groups.

The Study’s Specifics

To come to this conclusion, U.S. News states that the researchers working on this study split the participants into four different groups depending on age. Then, drivers were asked to operate a driving simulator that created a realistic driving experience for half an hour. During the course of the testing session, each participant was asked to drive between 50 to 60 mph for several minutes and conduct a texting conversation on a cellphone using one hand.

Researchers found that nearly 100 percent of the older drivers who participated would veer into the other lane as they tried to text and drive simultaneously. In comparison, only one-quarter of the participants between the ages of 18 to 24 would swerve into the opposing lane of traffic. While researchers are unsure of why this difference between older and younger drivers exists, some suspect that older drivers may be less capable of multitasking or spend more time looking at their phones when they text.

Texting And Driving Is Unsafe For All Age Groups

Although younger drivers may be better at texting and driving, this does not mean that it is a safe activity to perform behind the wheel of a vehicle. According to the Federal Communications Commission, text messaging creates a personal injury crash risk that is 23 times higher than driving while not distracted.

Additionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that texting and driving is one of the most dangerous forms of distracted driving because it combines all three forms of distraction – manual, visual and cognitive.

Distracted Driving In Georgia

To prevent drivers from texting behind the wheel on the roads in Georgia, Distraction.gov states that there is a ban on texting and driving for all drivers in the state. However, many collisions involving distracted driving injure and kill many in Georgia and throughout the country every day. According to the CDC, more than nine people are killed daily and over 1,000 are injured in distracted driving-related accidents.

Drivers in Georgia who are injured in a distracted driving-related collision may incur injuries that harm their ability to live a normal daily life. If you sustained injuries in a car accident, speak with an attorney of find out what compensation may be available to you.

Keywords: car, accident, injury