Gadgets Tied to 25 Percent of Collisions

MSNBC recounts that 25 percent of motor vehicle crashes are tied to distracted driving caused by in-vehicle gadget use. Reporting on a comprehensive review of distracted driving research by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), the MSNBC story notes that drivers may be distracted up to half of the time! The GHSA study (link here) considers past research, recommends areas for further investigation, and offers recommendations about how state lawmakers might best proceed based upon the latest scientific data.

In the end, we all know that distracted driving is problem on our roadways. Mobile phone use—and especially texting—while driving can take a motorist's attention completely away from the road. Remind your students to "keep their heads in the game" while driving. Distracted driving is extremely dangerous—and it's probably the most easily preventable cause of collisions!