Recent surveys show that while the majority of teen drivers recognize the danger of being distracted, most will allow themselves to be distracted anyways. Some believe that nothing bad will happen, or that they are only distracted for a split second. Apps like DriveSafe.ly can save lives by taking away two of the “symptoms” of distracted driving – hands off the wheel and eyes off the road. It can also reduce the urge to respond immediately with the auto-respond feature, letting the sender know that the driver is currently unavailable and will reply later. Click here for more information.

Teenagers, while more technologically savvy than many of their parents, are also more likely to be distracted by tech use. Even among the general population, the numbers show how destructive distracted driving can be. “In 2009, 104 million collisions were caused by drivers using cell phones; 200,000 collisions were caused by drivers text-messaging.” In response to the problem, California police officers have launched a campaign to educate teen drivers about the problem. Click here to read article.

Like many states, Massachusetts has enacted a law that bans texting while driving, which goes into effect October 1. Many residents have already been practicing to comply with the new law, but it has not been easy. Trying to give up an activity that is almost constant while awake is difficult, especially for young people who have had cell phones for most of their lives. Many are addicted to the constant flow of information provided by their phones. Still, efforts are being made due to the new law in place. Click here to read more.

Many states are stepping up their enforcement of anti-distracted driving laws. In Alabama there is a new lobbying organization, Alabamians Against Distracted Driving, dedicated to enforcing existing rules and enacting new laws against cell use on the road and other distractions. Local police are also increasing their issuance of citations for texting or holding the phone while on a call. See articles below:

New safe driving lobby against texting, distractions

Distracted driving: Montgomery police will start issuing motorists warning citations today

As distracted driving stories hit the national news, more drivers are becoming aware of the risk that activities like texting while driving pose to their health and safety. Even President Obama has banned government employees from texting while driving government vehicles. Many states already have laws against certain activities while driving, and others are in the process of enacting them. Unfortunately, though most drivers (97%) think texting while driving should be illegal, and half think it should carry the same penalties as driving drunk, texting behind the wheel continues to increase.

Culture shift needed to stop mixing cellphones and cars

Even the nation’s military branches are joining the fight to combat texting while driving. It is currently prohibited by the Air Force and DOD (Department of Defense) among others. Besides civilian penalties from local law enforcement, service members in violation of these policies are subject to disciplinary action. See article below:

Commentary: Texting while driving can cost you

Though many states have or are enacting tougher laws to prevent distracted driving incidents, some states are having pushback on attempts to pass legislation. In Pennsylvania, the Senate made distracted driving for cell phone use a secondary offense for junior license holders, after the House passed it as a primary offense. The city of Erie also reduced cell use violations to a secondary offense. These measures make it harder to penalize distracted drivers, since they can only be cited if there is an accident or other moving violation. Read full story below:

EDITORIAL: Pennsylvania needs to take action on drivers, cell phones

In this story, a 16-year-old girl from Texas survives a nearly fatal accident after texting while driving. The story and accompanying photos show how much damage a few seconds of distraction can do, especially for an inexperienced driver. Click here to read story and watch news segment.

While awareness about the danger of texting while driving is increasing, texting while walking can also be deadly. Most injuries are minor, from bumping into other people, but some have walked into traffic and fallen down stairs as a result. “In England, texting-on-the-go injuries have grown to such an extent that officials in London have experimented with padding lampposts to protect multitasking people from smacking into them.” See article below for more information:

Texting Can Be a Deadly Distraction

With the increase in distracted driving awareness, many media outlets have featured the DriveSafe.ly application – the best solution to the problem of texting and reading emails while driving. See a few examples below:

Smart Phone Apps For Motorists

Phone apps reduce risks of texting, driving

Gadgets for Gabbing Behind the Wheel