FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO) — The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) is urging Hoosiers to make safety a top priority on the road by buckling up and putting their phones down. Wednesday, Oct. 29, marks Buckle Up Phone Down Day, a statewide effort to encourage drivers and passengers to make simple, life-saving choices every time they travel.
The campaign focuses on two of the most effective ways to prevent serious crashes — wearing seatbelts and avoiding distractions behind the wheel.
“Nearly 900 people lost their lives on Indiana roadways last year,” said INDOT Commissioner Lyndsay Quist. “Overall, fatalities are decreasing, but we’re still seeing a higher incidence of injury crashes. INDOT is working to enhance roadway safety through a variety of systemic improvements, but creating lasting change also takes consistent cooperation and behavior modification from members of the traveling public.”
This is the third year INDOT has joined more than two dozen other state transportation departments in the Buckle Up Phone Down movement, a national initiative aimed at reducing traffic fatalities and serious injuries.
According to INDOT, just under seven percent of Indiana drivers don’t wear their seatbelts, but they account for 45 percent of passenger car fatalities. Meanwhile, texting while driving increases the risk of a crash by 50 percent. In 2023 alone, more than 9,000 collisions were linked to driver inattention or cell phone use, despite Indiana’s Hands-Free Law, enacted in 2020.
Officials say that while infrastructure improvements can make roads safer, driver behavior remains a critical factor in reducing crashes and saving lives.
“Wearing your seatbelt and putting your phone away are two of the simplest things anyone can do to protect themselves and others,” Quist said. “Even one life lost is too many.”
INDOT is encouraging Hoosiers to take the Buckle Up Phone Down pledge and share the message on social media using the hashtag #BuckleUpPhoneDown.
For more information about Indiana’s traffic safety efforts, visit www.in.gov/indot.
