One study by Carnegie Mellon found that using a smartphone behind the wheel reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37%. Another project, this one carried out by the University of Utah, concluded that smartphone use while driving (even hands-free) can delay your reaction time as much as having a BAC of .08%. nOther facts:nWhen you send or read a text, your eyes are off the road for around five seconds. If you are traveling at 55 mph, this is the equivalent of driving the length of a football field with your eyes closed.nIt can take only three seconds for a car crash to occur after a driver has been distracted. nDistracted driving is one of the leading causes of fatalities and injuries on U.S. roads. Motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers killed 3,142 people in 2019. According to the CDC, one in five of those killed in distracted driving crashes in 2018 were not in vehicles―they were walking, riding their bikes, or engaging in similar activities.nAccidents that are not fatal can still cause catastrophic injuries such as:nTraumatic brain injuriesnBack and neck injuriesnFracturesnInternal organ damagenSpinal cord injuriesnAmputationnBurns