The Colorado Department of Transportation is rolling out a new campaign in April to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving.

According to the department, distracted driving is one of the biggest threats to safety on Colorado’s roadways, accounting for more than 15,000 crashes each year, or an average of about 42 per day.

“Distracted drivers do not see the risk of their behavior until it’s too late,” Darrell Lingk, CDOT’s highway safety officer, said in a news release. “While the risks associated with distracted driving are well documented, studies show the majority of Coloradans still choose to engage in this behavior, which presents a danger to everyone who uses our roads.”

Crashes involving distracted drivers have been on the rise, according to data from CDOT. There were 13,332 distracted driving crashes in 2012, which grew to 15,143 by 2019. Of the crashes in 2019, more than 4,300 individuals were injured and 39 were killed.

A survey of Colorado drivers from 2019 revealed that 92% of respondents admitted to driving distracted within the prior week, most involving cellphones.

In response, CDOT is launching a new public messaging campaign asking drivers to consider the question: If you saw how others reacted to your distracted driving, would that change your behavior? The goal of the campaign will be to focus on the social stigma of distracted driving to get motorists to consider their behavior behind the wheel.

For more information about distracted driving in Colorado or to learn more about the Distraction Reactions campaign, visit Distracted.CoDOT.gov.