The Impact of Ohio's New Distracted Driving Law on Columbus Vehicle Crashes: A Time Series Study

Abstract

The current study sought to evaluate the effectiveness of Ohio’s new distracted driving law by utilizing a time series design that controlled for multiple variables that could also be responsible for vehicle crashes. The study focused on vehicle crashes in Columbus, Ohio, and only those reported by the Columbus Police Department. While some results showed statistically significant decreases in vehicle crashes in the warning and enforcement periods (periods after implementation of the new law), other results showed statistically significant increases or a lack of meaningful differences. Taken as a whole, the inconsistent results do not allow for strong conclusions regarding the impact of the distracted driving law on vehicle crashes in Columbus, Ohio.

Keywords: Distracted driving, Ohio, vehicle crashes, roadway safety, time series, law enforcement, traffic violations