Distracted Driving Focus of sTEP April 3-10

Law enforcement agencies across the state are partnering for a Special Traffic Enforcement Program (sTEP) to help curb the epidemic of distracted driving.

That’s Trooper Tom Williams with the Mason City District office of the Iowa State Patrol, who adds that your primary responsibility as a driver is paying attention to the task at hands.

Williams says their sTEP effort April 3rd through April 10th comes as driving activity increases.

Local agencies participating in the distracted driving crackdown include Charles City Police, and the Floyd, Chickasaw and Howard County Sheriff’s Offices.  

According to the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, there were over 9,200 crashes on Iowa roadways in 2022 because of distracted/inattentive drivers. Those types of wrecks were responsible for 20 deaths, over 3,600 injured persons, and over $81 million dollars in property damage. 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports over 32,000 people died in distraction-affected crashes across the country from 2011 to 2020.