You won’t believe how many Bengalureans use their phone behind the wheel

83% Bengalureans use their cell phone while driving. The city has the highest number of distracted drivers. 

Bengaluru, otherwise known as the Silicon Valley of India is known for making innovations in technology and science. But these advancements, in many ways, are also putting people’s lives at risk. Almost 83% of the city’s drivers use their mobile phones while driving, according to a recent study.

Save Life Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation found that a vast number of city’s drivers display disregard for road safety. Reason? They are usually texting or speaking on the phone and when they aren’t doing any of this, they are using social media.

The survey was conducted across different cities in India and found Bengaluru drivers to be the most distracted in comparison to other cities.

Perhaps this explains why the city witnessed 7,506 road accidents in 2016 alone. Among them, 793 people lost their lives while 4193 suffered injuries from various accidents.

Saji Cherian from the Save Life Foundation said that distracted driving is a serious offence but there are no laws surrounding it. “It affects the driver cognitively and visually and we need to understand that the mind cannot multitask,” he told Deccan Chronicle

One of the reasons why the city ranks high in cell phone usage while driving is probably because 70%  Bengalureans  own a smartphone, the study found.

At present, there are no laws surrounding texting while driving. However, a new set of rules have been proposed under the Motor Vehicles Act. These are yet to be passed by the Rajya Sabha.