Distracted driving — Colorado Permit Test

A distraction is anything that takes your attention away from driving, and taking your eyes off the road, your hands off the wheel or your mind off driving all present obvious risks.

Three different ways to be distracted and only one of them is visible from outside the car. The one in your head is the hardest to notice.

A distraction is anything that takes your attention away from driving

Mental activities that take your mind away from driving are just as dangerous as taking your eyes off the road, and even a simple task such as tuning a radio can be risky in bad weather or heavy traffic.

A driver looking straight ahead and thinking about something else sees the road without reading it. Nothing about them looks distracted.

Mental activities that take your mind away from driving are just as dangerous

Do not attempt to eat or drink, read, smoke or vape, apply makeup, or adjust the music while you are driving.

Every one of them takes a hand, an eye or both. The list is specific because drivers think of these as small enough not to count.

Do not attempt to eat or drink, read, smoke or vape, apply makeup

Many drugs, including alcohol and marijuana, reduce a driver’s ability to manage multiple tasks, so a distraction that would be merely hazardous for a normal driver may be life-threatening for an impaired one.

Impairment eats the spare capacity you would otherwise use to cope with a distraction. The two multiply rather than add.

Distractions that could be merely hazardous for a normal driver may pose a life-threatening danger to an impaired driver as well as other drivers and pedestrians

To prevent distraction, secure pets in a pet carrier or portable kennel and make sure children are properly and safely restrained.

An animal loose in the car climbs into your lap at the worst moment. A restrained one cannot.

Properly secure pets in a pet carrier or portable kennel

Become familiar with equipment in the vehicle before you drive, and practice basic functions such as adjusting the temperature or radio settings without taking your eyes off the road.

The first time you hunt for a control is the time you look down for four seconds. Learning it parked means never needing to.

Become familiar with equipment in the vehicle

Review maps and plan your route before you begin driving, and preselect radio stations or a playlist for easy access.

Deciding where to turn while driving is a distraction dressed up as navigation. Doing it first removes it entirely.

Review maps and plan your route before you begin driving

Avoid arguments and stressful or emotional conversations while driving.

An argument is a mental distraction that lasts for miles. It takes your attention away as completely as a phone does.

Avoid arguments and stressful or emotional conversations

What counts as a driving distraction?

Anything taking your attention from driving. Three different ways to be distracted and only one of them is visible from outside the car. The one in your head is the hardest to notice. Colorado Driver Handbook, p.24: “A distraction is anything that takes your attention away from driving”