By james art BATON ROUGE — East Baton Rouge Parish has been hit hard by fatal crashes this year.
According to the Center for Transportation Safety Analysis and Research, in 2024 there were 29 fatal crashes believed to be caused by distracted driving.
Greg Fisher of the state Highway Safety Commission said May and September are the two deadliest months. He says there are many factors that contribute to crash fatalities, but taking your eyes off the road for a few seconds can be deadly.
“If you drive 55 miles an hour and take your eyes off the road for five seconds, you’ve already traveled the length of five football fields,” Fischer said.
In September, a pedestrian was killed in a major crash at Magnolia Bridge Road and Greenwell Springs Road. Earlier that month, four people were injured in a separate crash in Central, where some residents believe distracted driving played a key role.
“This is very distracted driving and speeding. If people would pay attention and not play on their phones and just obey the speed limit,” said Central resident Hunter Callahan.
Earlier this month, a 25-year-old mother died in a crash on Highland Road.
State police said the Capital Region typically has the highest rate of fatal crashes in the state. Officers said they can’t specifically measure how many are the result of distracted driving because they don’t always subpoena phone records for every fatal crash.