Do Not Text and Drive!

Author of article: Safety Defense Coach-Amy Washington. ©2017 Brick Street Safety Academy

Questions:

• Do you know how dangerous it is to text and drive?

• How many times have you found yourself texting while you were driving?

• Have you ever said the words: “I’m not like those people who text and drive. I can pay attention, text and drive with no problem.”?

• How would you feel if someone killed your loved one while they were texting and driving?

These are just a few questions that should be addressed before you sit behind the wheel of your vehicle.

Brick Street Safety Academy does not condone or advocate texting while driving. It is imperative to know that when you enter into your vehicle you should be focused at all times. Keep in mind the vehicle that you’re driving can cause an injury or death if not driven to the best of its ability safely.

It is your responsibility to ensure and implement all safety measures when on the road. If you text while driving you will not stay focused. Your attention to visuals or details such as: pedestrians, signage, safety lights, other vehicles that may be in front, back or to the side of you, will become obscured. Last but not least, your ability to react to a situation will be slower than usual if texting while driving.

The best method in being safe while driving with your cell phone is to avoid texting while operating your vehicle. If you must text or even check your phone for messages or set your GPS, pull over to the side of the road or into a parking lot of a store or gas station etc., to check your phone or text(s).

Do not gamble with your life or with innocent lives around you!

Remember the question: Have you ever said the words:

“I’m not like those people who text and drive. I can pay attention, text and drive with no problem.”

Why risk it?

Always play it safe. It only takes seconds to injure or kill someone while driving. And, if you kill someone due to your negligence to be risky it will be your life that will forever change for the worst. So don’t risk it!

Check out the following videos:

After viewing these videos think about the following questions:

• Is it worth it to text and drive?

• Is my cell phone more important than my life?

• Whose responsibility is it to make sure that I am safe as well as others around me when I am driving?

• Do I want to live or have someone’s death on my conscious because of a stupid text?

Did you know…

• Cell phone used while driving has led up to 1.6 million crashes each year. According to the NSC (National Safety Council).
  

• Nearly 330,000 injuries occur each year from accidents caused by texting while driving.

• 94% of drivers support a ban on texting while driving.

• 1 out of every 4 car accidents in the United States is caused by texting and driving.

• Answering a text takes away your attention for about five seconds. Traveling at 55 mph, that’s enough time to travel the length of a football field.

• 74% of drivers support a ban on hand-held cell phone use.

• Texting while driving is 6x more likely to cause an accident than driving drunk.

• Texting while driving causes a 400% increase in time spent with eyes off the road.

• Of all cell phone related tasks, texting is by far the most dangerous activity.

‘Watch the following video demonstrating how texting while driving is not safe.

Hopefully, after reading and watching all of the informative, eye-opening materials provided here on this page. You now know without a doubt how dangerous texting and driving really is.

The videos used in this lesson were provided by: YouTube.

For additional information or stats visit the following websites to learn more about texting and driving at:

National Safety Council

AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety

Stop The Texts. Stop The Wrecks

Be Alert, Aware and most definitely BE SAFE!!

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Author of article: Safety Defense Coach-Amy Washington. ©2017 Brick Street Safety Academy