Study: Adults Text As Often As Teens While Driving

A new study published Friday by the Pew Research Internet found that although texting and driving is often seen as a problem with teenagers, adults are just as likely to text or read text messages behind the wheel.

Twenty-seven percent of adults (ages 18 and older) said they had sent or read a text message while driving compared with 26 percent of teens who said they had sent a text message while driving.

Forty-nine percent of people said they were in a car when the driver was sending or reading text messages while driving.Three in four cell-owning adults said they had talked on their phone while driving compared with 52 percent of teens.

Additionally, one in every six cell-owning adults said they had physically bumped into another person or an object because they were distracted by their cell phones.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a driver using a cell phone while operating a motor vehicle is at an increased risk of getting into an accident than drivers not using cell phones.

The data was collected between the end of April and the end of May for drivers 18 years and older, while the data for teens was previously collected and released in 2009 by Princeton Survey Research International.

The survey quizzed 2,252 American adults, 1,917 who owned cell phones and 1,189 who used text messaging.

The use of handheld cell phones to make calls, text or email is banned in the City of Chicago, Evanston and Winnetka. The city of Park Ridge is reconsidering a similar ban.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a car accident, we may be able to assist you. Contact our office for a free consultation.