We all know about driving while distracted, but do you know about walking while distracted? It may seem like a new concept, but if you cast your mind back, you’ve probably done it in a few times in the past year. While it’s certainly not as dangerous to others as operating heavy machinery (in an immediate and severe way), walking while distracted is actually very dangerous and can cause harm to yourself or others if you’re not careful.

What to do about this practice? Well, we’ve put together a guide to help you find out. If you’re going to live in the modern world, why not be more safe about it?

Discover why it’s so important to put down your cell phone and cut out your distracted walking! Read on to find out more.

Whether it’s checking your emails, playing a game on an app, texting a friend back or keeping up on the weather, when you’re paying more attention to your phone than you are to your surroundings, it’s a recipe for disaster. Motor vehicle and pedestrian traffic killed nearly 4,500 pedestrians in 2011 in the United States alone. Could every single accident that has happened as a result of distracted walking been avoided? Probably not, but there is something pushing those numbers up, so what is the common denominator? It may be that we are on our cell phones so often that the amount of incidents happening connected to this practice is going up because of it.

It’s actually never a good time to check your phone if you’re in motion, whether on foot or in the car. Even if you’re being a cautious pedestrian while crossing in designated walkways, even walking on the sidewalk and not paying attention could be dangerous! Over 1,100 people were treated in emergency rooms at the hospital in 2011 for walking and using an electronic device or cell phone. When you’re paying attention to your phone and not where you’re going, it becomes far easier to trip over objects in the sidewalk, twist your ankle on a curb, or even wander into the way of a bicycle or a passing car.

People engage in these patterns of behavior every single day. After all, it’s easy to see how someone could consider it safe to use their phone while walking while considering it unsafe to do so while driving. Young people are also frequently at risk for walking while being distracted by their cell phone are electronics. Follow these safety tips, and if you get into a distracted walking accident, contact a pedestrian accident lawyer at The Law Offices of Payas, Payas, and Payas.

Some tips for staying safe:



• When walking in a public area, get off your phone! You’ll be able to navigate your surroundings better and avoid bumping into people.
• Keep volume lower while crossing the street or take your headphones off altogether.

- Step to the side if answering a call.
• Never assume a car sees you!
• Don’t look at your phone while crossing the street.
• Watch out for people, bicycles and strollers at all times if you must check your phone!