[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/blog\/portland-ranked-poorly-by-traffic-report-despite-cell-phone-ban\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/blog\/portland-ranked-poorly-by-traffic-report-despite-cell-phone-ban\/","headline":"Portland Ranked Poorly by Traffic Report despite Cell Phone Ban","name":"Portland Ranked Poorly by Traffic Report despite Cell Phone Ban","description":"Earlier this year, insurance company Allstate crowned Portland drivers as some of the worst in the country. Out of 200 major cities featured in\u00a0America\u2019s Best Drivers, a yearly report compiled from analyzing insurance claims, Portland ranked #183 on a scale for the \u201cSafest Driving City in 2015.\u201d The report looked at the average years between...","datePublished":"2016-08-05","dateModified":"2024-05-22","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/blog\/author\/rizklaw\/#Person","name":"Rizk Law","url":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/blog\/author\/rizklaw\/","identifier":9,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/10e23ce5e6c4dadb4589cd8edf2c3f59ac356a6e876c3656917777913d9c3bc1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/10e23ce5e6c4dadb4589cd8edf2c3f59ac356a6e876c3656917777913d9c3bc1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Rizk Law","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rizk-law-logo-footer.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rizk-law-logo-footer.jpg","width":278,"height":65}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Richard-Rizk-headshot.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Richard-Rizk-headshot.jpg","width":383,"height":427},"url":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/blog\/portland-ranked-poorly-by-traffic-report-despite-cell-phone-ban\/","about":["Auto Accident"],"wordCount":826,"articleBody":"Earlier this year, insurance company Allstate crowned Portland drivers as some of the worst in the country. Out of 200 major cities featured in\u00a0America\u2019s Best Drivers, a yearly report compiled from analyzing insurance claims, Portland ranked #183 on a scale for the \u201cSafest Driving City in 2015.\u201d The report looked at the average years between traffic accidents, the relative likelihood that an accident would happen compared\u00a0to that of the national average, the previous year\u2019s ranking, and the change from 2014 to 2015.But are Portlanders really that bad at driving? The report places Portland at number 183 in\u00a0accident frequency,\u00a0with Seattle just one placement behind at 184. According to Allstate spokesman Annie Gustafson, this means that \u201cdrivers in Portland are on average likely to experience an auto collision every 6.9 years, which is 45% more likely than the national average.\u201dThe data is representative of one-tenth of the car insurance market, meaning that it is a good overall representation of how often drivers in the 200 cities find themselves in car accidents. In Rose City\u2019s defense, John Brady of PBOT affirmed that Portland is seeing a reduction in traffic fatalities despite the high accident rate.Why are Portlanders so likely to crash?Driver distraction is often cited as the main reason for car accidents. According to the International Organisation for Road Accident Prevention, human error is the cause of 90% of road accidents each year worldwide. The CDC reports that over 8 are killed and 1,161 injured in\u00a0crashes involving distracted drivers\u00a0every day here in the U.S. The CDC also identifies three types of distractions:VisualManualCognitiveVisual\u00a0distractions involve removing one\u2019s eyes from the road. This could mean looking at someone who is in the car with you, such as parents who turn their heads to discipline their kids while driving.\u00a0Manual\u00a0distractions involve removing one\u2019s hands from the steering wheel, such as to pick up a cell phone or dig in one\u2019s purse.\u00a0Cognitive\u00a0distractions are things like daydreaming while driving. Your hands and eyes can be on the road, but if you are daydreaming or feeling sleepy, your mind is elsewhere, which could very easily lead to a\u00a0serious crash.The act of texting while driving incorporates all three types of distractions. In Portland, driving while impaired, speeding, and refusing to obey yields are also cited as some of the top causes of accidents by Mr. Brady. But cell phone use is a serious concern these days, with over\u00a0660,000 drivers\u00a0using cell phones or \u201cmanipulating\u00a0electronic devices\u201d while driving on any given day.Oregon\u2019s Cell Phone LawOregonians are by now all too familiar with the state\u2019s strict cell phones laws enacted by the passage of House Bill 2377 in 2010. The law bans the use of mobile communication devices with a few exceptions.Under this law, a \u201cmobile communication device\u201d is any text messaging device or wireless 2-way communication device designed to receive and send voice or text communication. Exceptions include:Someone who is calling for help for an emergency situation where no other person is capable of doing soUsing such a device to perform agricultural operationsSomeone who is operating an emergency vehicleAdults 18 and older using hands-free devicesAnyone who is operating a vehicle while providing public safety servicesAnyone who uses a handheld cell phone while driving for the purpose of his jobAnyone turning the device on or offThe strict law bans any use of cell phones while driving, and even with a hands-free device, drivers under 18 are not allowed to use them. The base fine for this violation is $142.00. The highest possible fine was recently increased to $500 for a violation that police are determined to catch considering some ugly statistics about\u00a0texting while driving.While the stats are disturbing, can such laws actually reduce traffic accidents and change driving behavior? Studies have found that the use of hands-free devices is just as dangerous as talking while holding a cell phone, and in some cases\u00a0even worse than driving while impaired. Banning texting altogether has been shown to increase the amount of accidents, as drivers try harder to hide their cell phones by placing them further out of sight.A study done by Highway Loss Data Institute in September 2010 compared the outcomes of cell phone bans in 4 states: California, Louisiana, Minnesota, and Washington. According to the President of HLDI, \u201ctexting bans haven\u2019t reduced crashes at all. In a perverse twist, crashes increased in 3 of the 4 states we studied after bans were enacted. It\u2019s an indication that texting bans might even increase the risk of texting for drivers who continue to do so.\u201dNo matter how many laws are passed, you just can\u2019t regulate human behavior. We are fallible creatures and will continue to be. In the difficult time of a serious injury accident you have the right to consult with a\u00a0personal injury attorney in Portland. Call Rizk Law today: 503.245.5677 for a free consultation."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/blog\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Portland Ranked Poorly by Traffic Report despite Cell Phone Ban","item":"https:\/\/www.rizklaw.com\/blog\/portland-ranked-poorly-by-traffic-report-despite-cell-phone-ban\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]