At the U.S. Department of Transportation, we heard America’s call to end the dangerous practice of distracted driving on our nation’s roadways. Distracted driving is a serious, life-threatening practice and we will not rest until we stop it.
We are leading the effort but you are the key to preventing distracted driving. The message is simple – Put it down!
Emphasis mine.
Oprah's show on MLK's Birthday was entitled This Show Could Save Your Life: America's New Deadly Obsession. Video available at her site.
More Stats & Facts from Distraction.gov:
Research on distracted driving reveals some surprising facts:
* Using a cell phone use while driving, whether it’s hand-held or hands-free, delays a driver's reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent. (Source: University of Utah)
* Driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37 percent. (Source: Carnegie Mellon)
* 80 percent of all crashes and 65 percent of near crashes involve some type of distraction. (Source: Virginia Tech 100-car study for NHTSA)
* Nearly 6,000 people died in 2008 in crashes involving a distracted or inattentive driver, and more than half a million were injured. (NHTSA)
* The worst offenders are the youngest and least-experienced drivers: men and women under 20 years of age. (NHTSA)
* Drivers who use hand-held devices are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves. (Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
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