This Is Proof Drivers Don’t Pay Attention To The Road

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A crossover traveling down Interstate 10 in Phoenix collided with an abandoned trailer in the middle lanes, the crash caught by a traffic camera. Other drivers saw the dark trailer, swerving to avoid it, but one driver just plowed into it. We can’t say for sure, but we strongly suspect distraction played a strong role in the collision.

You always need to be aware when driving. This video shows that perfectly.

This section of I-10 is near 27th Avenue and as you can see in the video, it’s not completely darkened. Combine that with the cars’ headlights and the trailer was visible with enough time for other drivers to slow and/or swerve to avoid hitting it.

There’s another theory that the driver of the crossover saw the police car with lights flashing on the side of the road and became fixated on that, not seeing the trailer. We know a lot of people absolutely lose it when they see a cop, maybe because they have warrants or are an habitual speeder. But to take one’s eyes off the road ahead to focus on a cop sitting on the shoulder is obviously a bad idea and constitutes a form of driver distraction.

To prove that there’s a fair number of distracted drivers on public roads all you have to do these days is drive through any major metropolitan area. We routinely see drivers who are too engrossed in their phone or the touchscreen on their dash to pay attention to their surroundings. Some get in an intense conversation with their passenger. And we strongly suspect there are those who simply zone out because driving is too boring for them.

Whatever the reason for people being inattentive behind the wheel, it’s a problem that needs to be solved. Police can only do so much to cut down on driver distraction. Society could do more in the way of discouraging this dangerous behavior.

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