© Photo: Buffalotechno
We all know about the dangers of distracted driving ... but maybe we should be concerned about distracted walking, too.
A new study in the journal Injury Prevention shows that nearly one in three people cross busy streets while distracted by their cell phones -- and some are even doing it during rush hour.
The most dangerous distracted walking activity? Texting -- people who texted took nearly two seconds longer than non-texters to cross around three or four lanes of traffic. And they also ignored traffic lights, didn't look both ways and crossed in an area that is not the crosswalk nearly four times more than non-texters.
The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Washington, included 1,102 pedestrians who were monitored for their "distracted" activities: listening to music, texting, talking on the phone, talking to a companion, or dealing with a child or pet.
The researchers found that nearly half of the time, these distracted activities were taking place during rush hour (between the hours of 8 and 9 a.m.). The age group most likely to be guilty of this: 25-to-44-year-olds.
The researchers also found that just slightly fewer than a third of the people in the study were distracted in some way when they crossed the road: 11 percent listened to music, 6 percent talked on the phone, and 7 percent text messaged.
Comment: Judging by the results, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the Sandy Hook Massacre and subsequent 'debate' about gun control was actually carried out to push Americans towards becoming more heavily armed than ever before.
Once rising food prices translate into food shortages and society begins to break down, the U.S. will be left with a whole lot of hungry armed people, the perfect recipe for a nationwide massacre.