Take These 6 Steps to Reduce Distracted Driving

Look I know nobody wants another lecture about phone use while driving. But people are literally dying so… here we are.

Distracted driving kills thousands of people every year. According to the NHTSA, it claimed over 3,000 lives in a single recent year. Thats more than eight people every single day. And most of those deaths were completely preventable.

So heres six actual practical steps you can take:

One: Put your phone somewhere you literally cannot reach it while driving. Trunk. Back seat. Glove compartment. Wherever works. If its in your cup holder or your pocket youre going to check it. Thats just human nature. Remove the temptation entirely.

Two: Set up do not disturb while driving mode. Both iPhone and Android have this feature. It silences notifications and can even auto-reply to texts saying youre driving. Use it.

Three: Handle navigation before you start moving. Put in your destination. Check the route. Get comfortable with where youre going. Dont be fiddling with maps while youre also trying to drive.

Four: If you need to take a call use hands-free but honestly? Even hands-free calls are distracting. The cognitive load of a conversation takes attention away from driving. If its not urgent it can wait.

Five: Eat before or after your drive not during. Trying to unwrap a burger while merging onto the highway is just asking for trouble. I know we all do it. We should all stop.

Six: If you have passengers let them handle stuff. They can change the music. They can respond to texts. They can navigate. Thats what theyre there for.

None of this is complicated. None of it requires sacrifice beyond mild inconvenience. And it could literally save someones life – maybe even yours.

The road requires your full attention. Give it.