18,000 drivers: Washington State Patrol nabs more distracted drivers through Sept. than all of 2017

Law enforcement officials have fielded several questions from the seattlepi.com about distracted driving, outlining what is and is not OK when we try to juggle life on the road. Check out the following advice on distracted driving. less Law enforcement officials have fielded several questions from the seattlepi.com about distracted driving, outlining what is and is not OK when we try to juggle life on the road. Check out the following advice ... more Photo: JOE DYER, Seattlepi.com Photo: JOE DYER, Seattlepi.com Image 1 of / 18 Caption Close 18,000 drivers: Washington State Patrol nabs more distracted drivers through Sept. than all of 2017 1 / 18 Back to Gallery

It's more than just dummies: A month into the fourth quarter of the calendar year, and Washington State Patrol said troopers had already nabbed more distracted drivers in Washington than all of 2017.

Troopers contacted more than 18,000 drivers so far. To compare, in 2017, troopers stopped just 17,058.

Troopers reported 18,857 drivers had already been pulled over for distracted driving before they put a statewide focus on catching distracted drivers at the end of September. Meaning the new total was likely even higher.

Part of that may have something to do with the state's tough distracted driving law, which went into effect in July 2017. The law made use of any handheld device while driving illegal, even while stopped at a stop sign or light.

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Drivers also face a $99 fine for other distractions, like eating or smoking, though these are secondary (meaning they have to be pulled over for another offense). Drivers who have a holder on their dash for a device can use devices minimally to stop or start an application.

Violations don't come cheap either: It costs a driver at least $136 the first time they are caught using a handheld device. If you get caught driving distractedly again within five years, it costs at least $234.

And a few studies have found distracted driving is not as unlikely as you'd think. According to a study released by AAA earlier this year, the proportion of drivers who report regularly or fairly often talking on a cell phone has jumped 46 percent since 2013.

A recent report from DriversEd.com surveyed more than 1,400 drivers (an admittedly small sample size) to find that 41 percent of drivers admit to reading texts while in traffic.

Worse yet, eight percent of respondents admit to watching YouTube while behind the wheel.

So keep an eye out for distracted drivers next to you. And remember: if WSP sees those glowing phone screens, it's a $136 fine for you -- at least.