Parents Justify Texting While Driving and DUI
August 26, 2014
We understand that being a parent is hard work. Parents can be forgiven for occasional mistakes – such as that time they dropped you on your head as an infant. However, a recent survey conducted by Liberty Mutual reveals that parents are teaching their teens some terrible driving habits, such as texting while driving and driving under the influence.
Here are the surprising results:
- 88% of teens said their parents used a mobile device while at the wheel
- 58% said their parents texted while driving
- 42% said they have asked parents to stop text-messaging while operating a vehicle
- 18% said they have tried to get them to stop driving while high on weed
- 16% said the adults drove with kids in the car after having at least one alcoholic beverage
- 40% of teens who asked their parents to stop risky driving behaviors said their parents either ignore them or justify their actions!
Teens get the #DriveSafe message. They are constantly told not to drink and drive, text and drive, talk and drive, drive distracted, or drive while high. They are barraged with a million messages at school, at driver’s ed, on social media and at home. They are targeted by PR campaigns that create TV commercials, radio commercials, online ads, billboards, publicity stunts and teen-oriented events. However, when they see their own parents ignoring these messages or justifying their own risky behaviors, what are teen drivers expected to think?
Parents are the greatest influence on their children’s driving habits. Whether they know it or not, kids pick up their driving behaviors from mom and dad at a very young age. They notice when they drive with one hand, turn without blinkers, tailgate, speed and run through stop signs. Teenagers whose parents drive recklessly are more likely to be bad drivers themselves. That’s why it’s a shame to see that so many parents are driving distracted, and that any parents are driving while under the influence.
To all you teen drivers out there: forgive your parents… but, keep bugging them about driving safely. Offer to drive after they’ve had a beer. Tell them to pull over and let you drive if that phone call or text message is important. Surprise your folks by being the smart and sober one, and let them learn from your good influence.
A Powerful Message
May 6, 2014
This image from Bikers Against Texting says it all. Throw that phone in the back seat and drive safely this summer, because nothing is more important than a saved life.
The Price of that Text
April 28, 2014
It would seem that drivers have a serious texting addiction these days. The public outcry for safety has gone unnoticed by most text-obsessed drivers. They pass by anti-texting billboards and highway signs completely unaware because their eyes are glued to the glowing screens of their cell phones. Normally, I just try to get around these reckless drivers as quickly and safely as possible, but when one almost hits my car I will honk at them… only to be ignored because my fear of collision is less urgent than their social life.
Well, if drivers aren’t worried about their safety, or the safety of people around them, maybe they will take notice when slapped with a hefty traffic ticket. That would certainly make it harder to pay their cell phone bill. This is exactly what many states are hoping for, with all but 4 states joining the fight against texting while driving by charging offenders with penalties. Fines range from $20 (in California) to $10,000 (in Alaska), with an average of about $100.
A state-by-state map of texting while driving penalties can be found here.
How to Stop Texting While Driving? There’s an App for That.
April 8, 2014
Whether you want to control your own bad habit, or you want to ensure that your teen driver isn’t texting behind the wheel, there’s an app for that. In fact, there’s a few.
TXTShield is a password-protected app that shuts down a phone’s ability to text while the car is in motion. The minimum speed that shuts down the app can be set from 10 mph to 40 mph. When texting shuts down, incoming texts do not show up on the home screen and the app automatically sends a response to the person who texted, letting them know that they are driving and will respond later.
Text Limit is another option. This app shuts down the ability to text, call (except 911) and use the internet when the car reaches 30 mph to 60 mph, depending on what the parent or administrator sets as the minimum speed. It also allows control through a website, and sends location updates to the parent/administrator every 5 minutes.
Distracted Driving Tops Drunken Driving
April 5, 2014
According to the Nevada Highway Patrol, Nevada is now seeing more distracted driving crashes than drunken driving crashes. And, since most people don’t want to admit they are distracted by their cell phones, the already high statistics are actually higher than anyone thinks. See the full story here:
TWIT Spotting
April 2, 2014
If you like to text when you drive, then you might just end up on a TWIT (Texting While In Traffic) billboard. Passengers and pedestrians have been snapping photos of people texting for twitspotting.com, a website designed to let texting drivers know that they are being watched, and judged.
The TWIT project was created by San francisco graphic designer Brian Singer. According to Singer’s unofficial estimation, “For every nose picker, there’s 20 texters”. And so, the website was born, and the images started flooding in. Some of the photos have been posted on billboards throughout the San Francisco area.