The month of April has been designated as the National Distracted Driving Awareness Month and the Lincoln City Police Department(LCPD) will be utilizing traffic safety grant funds to conduct enhanced enforcement operations during the month. LCPD will be joining other law enforcement agencies across the state and nation in conducting these enhanced enforcement operations. Our first enhanced enforcement operation is planned for April 4th, 2022, with additional operations to follow during the month.
Distracted Driving is a dangerous behavior for drivers, passengers, and non-occupants alike. Distracted driving is a specific type of inattention that occurs when drivers divert their attention from the task of driving, to focusing on some other activity instead. These enforcement efforts are designed to increase the number of law enforcement officers on patrol with an emphasis on seeking out drivers who are distracted by talking or texting on their cell phones or using other electronic devices while they are operating their vehicle.
The goal of these enhanced enforcement efforts is to increase the safety of the citizens and visitors of Lincoln City. Statistical information provided by Oregon Impact and NHTSA indicate that between 2012 and 2019, nearly 26,004 people died in crashes involving a distracted driver. While fatalities from motor vehicle crashes decreased slightly in 2018, distraction-related fatalities increased by 10%. In addition, distracted driving crashes accounted for 15% of injury crashes and 14% of all police reported motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2019.
The Distracted Driving Enforcement grant funds are a valuable resource that assist in improving the traffic safety in the community. The objective is to raise awareness of the dangers of distracted driving and to reduce the number of distracted drivers from the roadways to prevent crashes that cause injuries and cost lives. These grant funds were made possible through the Oregon Department of Transportation and Oregon Impact.
