“Nearly 1 in 5 traffic crashes in Texas is caused by a distracted driver,” said TxDOT Deputy Executive Director John Barton. “Last year, 468 people were killed because someone took their attention off the road. How important is a fleeting distraction when it could end in the death of someone, perhaps even one of your loved ones?”

Distracted driving-related crashes in Texas are highest among 16- to 24-year-olds. In 2014, there were 100,825 crashes in Texas involving distracted driving — up 6 percent from the previous year.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, drivers using a mobile phone are four times more likely to cause serious injury in a crash. Text messaging is particularly dangerous. New research conducted last year by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute showed it takes a driver double the amount of time to react when they are distracted by text messaging. Additionally, sending or receiving a text takes a driver’s eyes away from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds. At 55 mph, that’s the equivalent of driving the length of a football field while blindfolded.

While mobile phone use is the most recognizable driving distraction, any type of behavior that draws a motorist’s attention away from driving is dangerous. TxDOT urges drivers to refrain from:

Texting, Checking email, Eating and drinking, Grooming, Reading, Programming a navigation system, Adjusting music or other audio device.

If a distraction absolutely requires immediate attention, TxDOT reminds drivers to pull over to a safe location and come to a complete stop before diverting their attention.