Driving Awareness Month

April is driving awareness month and to start the month the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has kicked off the month with a powerful video.

The short video portrays young adults having a conversation in their vehicle and for a split second the driver takes her eyes off the road and runs a stop sign. It is pretty easy to guess what happens next.

Even though the video portrays young adults or teenagers distracted when driving, the fact is everyone is affected by this epidemic. According to www.Distracted.gov, over sixty-six thousand vehicles daily driven vehicles have drivers who are using cell phones. Furthermore, 16% of distracted driving crashes involve 20 year-olds and younger, while 3,328 Americans were killed due to distracted driving in 2012.

What are officials doing about it? Some states have outlawed cellphone use completely. By this, a driver is not permitted to use a cellphone while driving. States which have not banned cellphone use while driving has other comparable types of restrictions for drivers. For example, in Texas, a motorist may not use a cellphone while an active school zone. Similarly, New York has vehicles that are specifically raised in height so that the officers can observe drivers easier, and cite them for using a cellphone while driving.

What are cellphone companies doing about it? Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile are cellphone companies that have an active role in preventing texting while driving. They sponsor a website called www.itcanwait.com and in it visitors can view the profound stories of lives that have been affected by texting and driving. The stories are sad, but unfortunately a common occurrence. This website also has ways to get involved; making a promise not to text and drive.

Many drivers may be under the false pretense that being distracted is simply using a cellphone. In reality, distractions can come in all forms when driving. One can be distracted when looking at other drivers, vehicle-passengers, eating while driving, radio music, and the list goes on.

What can be done to prevent distracted driving? A defensive driving course like Comedy Driving, Inc. can certainly raise awareness through education. Comedy Driving, Inc. has instructed about driving awareness for over 10 years and is to-date the largest defensive driving school in Texas. Distracted.gov also has also reached out to many youths in America by vowing to not drive distracted. Anyone can sign up and pledge, simply visit their website. Please get involve and help prevent accidents on the road that can change lives in an instant.