Texting While Driving–How Far Do You Travel Not Looking at Road?

We get inundated with messages and warnings about not texting or being digitally distracted while driving. But these stats get your attention.

Surprising data about how far you travel when your eyes not on the road

The GCSO has released some data showing how, even at a moderate highway speed of 55 miles per hour your car travels quite a bit even in 2-3 seconds.

A vehicle traveling 55 miles per hour covers 80 feet per second.  Considering research data shows the average texter behind the wheel glances down for five seconds before looking up again, the vehicle has traveled 403 feet.  That's beyond the length of a football field including the end zones!

We applied that data to various other speeds to see how far you go when you're not looking. According to a leading national law firm, McGuire Law, a vehicle traveling 70 MPH covers 100 feet per second. A person who glances down for five seconds has covered over 500 feet.

For a residential area, with a speed limit of 30 MPH, with a driver who glances down or away for five seconds, the car travels 44 feet per second. That's 220 feet.  How about a school zone of 20 miles per hour? About 145 feet. That's plenty of time for a driver to not see a child dart out into traffic.

The Research Institute has done testing on drivers using simulators and found even a two-second glance can result in serious consequences. If you're driving 70 MPH and glance away, what if the vehicle in front of you slows suddenly? Many of the texting drivers that were tested found themselves in potentially dangerous or serious situations.

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When you're driving and tempted to continually glance away from the road because of digital distraction, just remember how fast and how far you are actually traveling, maybe that will help convince you to wait til later to answer that text.