TZD and Distracted Driving
Last April was Distracted Driving Awareness month, and thanks to Key Club, we had some stuff put up around the school to show to our student body. These things included parts from cars that had been in accidents due to distracted driving, pictures around these parts to show the wreckage, and one display even had a child’s car seat from a wrecked car.
There was also a speaker that came in to talk about how distracted driving changed his life, and his family’s lives, forever. His daughter fell victim to distracted driving when she was composing a text to her friend, and didn’t notice the bus ahead of her had come to a stop. The Grim Reaper also paid us a visit and took volunteers from around our school to give our student body a visual of how distracted driving looks in the big picture.
Distracted driving doesn’t just mean texting while driving- even though that is the top reason for crashing. These next few reasons are something we are all guilty of doing at least once.
1) Cell Phone Usage (Texting or Talking)
Using a mobile while driving can increase the risk of a collision by four times,
according to several studies. Sending a text message is even worse, plus it’s illegal.
2) Adjusting Vehicle Settings
Messing with your stereo, changing the heat and AC settings, or playing around with the windows. Taking your eyes off the road for just a moment could cause you to crash.
3) Passengers
Teen drivers have a greater chance of crashing with friends in the car. Studies also show that you have an even bigger risk of a fatal crash when you have two or more friends in
the car.
4) Eating, Drinking, and Smoking
Drinking even a non-alcoholic drink takes your focus off the road, and some studies show that eating a cheeseburger can be more distracting than talking on your mobile.
5) External Distractions
Even though there is a ton of stuff going on in the car, there’s also pedestrians, other
cars, and tons of flashy advertisements to distract you from looking at the road.
Sources:
"The Top 5 Driver Distractions." RMS Geared. Geared, n.d. Web. 03 May 2016.
Photo taken from: http://www.thenewlywedpilgrimage.com/travel/10-tips-for-avoiding-distractions-while-driving/
Distracted driving is a real problem, and none of us is exempt or immune to it. Even if you are not the one texting or eating while you drive, your life could still be changed just because someone else is. We all need to work together to help end this problem, and make sure everyone is on board.