Distracted Driving Causes More Injuries than Impaired Driving Says SGI

According to Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI), more people in Saskatchewan are injured in distracted driving collisions every year than are injured in impaired driving and speeding collisions combined, Global News reports.

“There’s no phone call, there’s no text, there’s no Instagram story or message on Snap … that’s worth potentially injuring or killing somebody,” said SGI spokesperson Tyler McMurchy.

SGI says an average of 877 people are injured each year in collisions involving distracted driving, representing one out of every five injuries. Distracted driving also results in an average of 26 deaths each year, according to SGI.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re at a red light, (if) you’re stopped for a train. If you’re in a driving lane, you’re in care and control of that vehicle, you need to keep that phone out of your hand.”

Saskatoon police Staff Sgt. Patrick Barbar said officers in the city issue just under 3,000 tickets yearly for distracted driving.

SGI added that distracted driving is not limited to cellphones, and that it also includes lighting cigarettes, eating, grooming, and accessing purses or glove boxes.