The high costs of texting while driving, how it delays your reaction and can contribute to accidents.

Via: Rida Maqbool    Connect with her on Twitter @ridamaqbool02

Distracted Driving: One Text or Call Could Wreck It All

Via: NHTSA

With ever increasing demands on our personal and professional time in today’s busy society, learning to juggle multiple tasks at once is something we all face daily.  As a result, a new traffic safety epidemic has emerged on America’s roadways that demand immediate attention: distracted driving.

In 2012, 3,328 people were killed in crashes involving a distracted driver.  One of the most alarming and widespread forms of distracted driving is cell phone usage.  According to a Carnegie Mellon study, driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37 percent.  And a report from the National Safety Council found that people talking on cell phones or sending text messages cause more than one out of every four traffic accidents.

Text messaging is of heightened concern because it combines three types of distraction – visual, manual and cognitive.  In other words, texting involves taking your eyes off the road, your hands off the wheel, and your mind off the task of driving.

To tackle this ever-increasing problem, NHTSA is focusing on ways to change the behavior of drivers through legislation, enforcement, public awareness and education—the same tactics that have curbed drinking and driving and increased seat belt use.

NHTSA’s message is simple – “One Text or Call Could Wreck it All.” With supporters ranging from President Obama to Oprah and legislation being passed across the nation to discourage distracted driving, we hope drivers get the message loud and clear.

So the next time you are pressed for time, and it seems like multitasking in the car is the best decision, remember those 3,328 lives that were taken because someone decided they could do two things at once.  A text or call is not worth your life, or anyone else’s.

Content and Image Source: NHTSA

Today kicks off the NOYS Teen Distracted Driving Summit in Washington D.C which will go from September 18-21. NOYS are the National Organizations for Youth Safety. NOYS is dedicated to “to promote youth empowerment and leadership and build partnerships that will save lives, prevent injuries, and promote safe and healthy lifestyles among all youth.”

One major concern regarding youth safety is teen driving. According to Distraction.gov “11% of all drivers under the age of 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted at the time of the crash. This age group has the largest proportion of drivers who were distracted.” Further, “For drivers 15-19 years old involved in fatal crashes, 21 percent of the distracted drivers were distracted by the use of cell phones.” (Via NHTSA)

As part of the summit this week, NOYS has partnered with the It Can Wait campaign to end texting and driving. The high point of the Summit is September 19, 2013 which is the their day of action called the Drive 4 Pledges Day as both campaigns encourage drivers to pledge not to text and drive. Because distracted driving has taken so many lives, the issue is at the forefront not just for safety organizations but even national wireless service providers like AT&T and Verizon.

resqme, Inc. is a proud member of NOYS and encourages you to take the pledge and share information to family, friends and your general community. We encourage you to Speak Up and Speak Out. This could save a life.

To learn more about NOYS, visit http://noys.org/
To learn more about the It Can Wait campaign: http://www.itcanwait.com/