ATS study claims distracted red-light running is on the rise

Analysis released during National Distracted Driving Awareness Month by American Traffic Solutions (ATS), Distracted on Red, showcases the dangers of distracted driving behaviour and impact on red-light running. ATS sampled data from 67 intersections with red-light safety cameras across the United States over a three-month period. Distractions were coded into several categories, including cell phone use, looking away, eyes closed, smoking, eating/drinking, reading and applying make-up. ATS data showed distr
April 22, 2016 Read time: 2 mins

Analysis released during National Distracted Driving Awareness Month by 17 American Traffic Solutions (ATS), Distracted on Red, showcases the dangers of distracted driving behaviour and impact on red-light running.

ATS sampled data from 67 intersections with red-light safety cameras across the United States over a three-month period.

Distractions were coded into several categories, including cell phone use, looking away, eyes closed, smoking, eating/drinking, reading and applying make-up. ATS data showed distracted red-light running increased by 58 per cent from 2012 to 2015.

"Today, we live in a fast-paced world filled with all sorts of distractions. For drivers, distractions come in many forms ranging from cell phones to eating and drinking, to simply taking your eyes off the road to chat with a passenger," said ATS spokesperson Charles Territo. "Red-light running is an incredibly risky behaviour on its own, but when you add a distraction, the result can be deadly."

In 2014 alone, 3,129 were killed and 431,000 were injured in distracted driving crashes according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Red-light running is still the leading cause of urban crashes, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Enforcement

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • RedSpeed offers schools automated no-cost stop arm enforcement
    March 28, 2014
    School authorities in the US are turning to automated school bus stop arm enforcement to curb an astonishing number of violations. It is estimated that every year nearly 17,000 American children are sent to emergency rooms as a result of school bus related crashes. And when surveyed, 99% of school bus drivers reported that the most dangerous behaviour they encounter is drivers passing a school bus with its stop sign arm extended. Every day these drivers who violate the extended stop arm signs put at risk
    Read More
  • Bristol’s buses trial CycleEye detection system
    July 7, 2017
    Fusion Processing’s Jim Hutchinson looks at a two-year trial of the company’s cyclist detection system. Is cycling in a city dangerous? Well, that depends where you are and how you view statistics. Malmö is far more bike-friendly than Mumbai and the risk can either be perceived as small - one death per 29 million miles cycled in the UK in 2013 - or large - that equated to 109 deaths in the same year. Whatever your personal take on the data, the effect of these accidents can be felt indirectly too. News of c
    Read More
  • Surewise calls for mobility scooter update to Highway Code
    January 17, 2025
    'Unacceptable' that users are not already termed VRUs, insurer says
    Read More
  • US pedestrian deaths highest since 1988, says GHSA
    March 13, 2020
    The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) said that 6,590 pedestrian fatalities occurred in the US during 2019 - the highest number in more than 30 years. 
    Read More

Highlighted Content