While drunk drivers are still the most dangerous category of people on the road — in 2017, a total of 293 people died during incidents that involved drinking and driving — people focusing on their mobile devices while behind the wheel are nearly as reckless.

In a recent national study for Volvo by the Harris Poll, 55 percent of adults who were surveyed said they believed distracted driving was the biggest threat on the road, and smartphones were cited as the top source of distraction. Drunken driving came in second place at 31 percent.

While the number of people killed in distracted driving incidents is smaller than the number of people killed during accidents involving drunken driving, it is still highly dangerous. In 2016, a total of 10,497 people died on American highways because someone drove drunk, which translates to 30 people per day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to safe driving analytics provider Cambridge Mobile Telematics, texting and driving at 55 miles per hour is the equivalent of driving the length of a football field with your eyes closed. The National Safety Council has reported that at least nine Americans die and 100 are injured every day in crashes involving distracted driving.

And the Harris Poll’s study found that 71 percent of Americans admitted to using their phones while driving. Not surprisingly, 93 percent of those people said they were talking on their devices behind the wheel. More disturbingly, 60 percent said they were sending texts and 56 percent admitted to checking notifications.

To say this is an accident waiting to happen isn’t hyperbole. Chances are, if you are looking at your phone — and not the road — while operating a motor vehicle, you’re putting yourself and others at great risk.

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month. The Office of Highway Safety Planning has some good tips for safe driving: preset radio stations and other music listening devices before driving, secure items that could move around while driving, do not try to pick up items that fall on the floor, do not text or access the internet while you’re behind the wheel, ask a passenger to help with distracting activities.

One suggestion that was not mentioned, but should be followed, is that drivers who need to use their electronic devices while behind the wheel should pull over. If your work or family life require you to be on the phone constantly, consider installing Bluetooth or another hands-free option in your car.

It’s understandable that in the technology-centric world in which we’re living, people spend a significant amount of time on their smartphones. But risking your life or the lives of others or getting a ticket after a police officer pulls you over simply isn’t worth it.