Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Texting While Driving - Graphic British PSA Shows the Result

I'm sure that many of you have already seen this public service announcement from the U.K. but some will be seeing it for the first time. It concerns the dangers of texting while driving and it is very graphic. I suggest that parents watch it alone before deciding if they want their children to see it. Frankly, I think that anyone approaching driving age should be exposed to this message - it just might save their lives someday.

I have had had three very close calls in less than a year involving drivers paying more attention to their cell phones than to their driving. In each instance they slowly drifted over into my lane but I was able to get their attention in time by laying on my horn until they became aware again of their surroundings. Adults are every bit as guilty of this stupid habit as are teens and young adults - each of my near-misses involved a mature female driver behind the wheel of the other car.

And, of course, it's not just texting that causes this kind of accident. Some people become every bit as dangerous to themselves and others simply by trying to speak on a hand-held phone while driving.

Please watch this video and please share it with others if you have a website on which it can be hosted.

3 comments:

  1. Wow. It's hard to believe that anyone could even think about sending and reading text messages while driving a car, but I have seen it done.

    A friend's son was killed recently while at the side of the highway retrieving an item from the trunk of his car. The woman who hit him was reaching for her phone and swerved right off the road.

    My own father (who ironically complains about people on cell phones while driving) actually totalled my mother's car because he was reaching for a cell phone and ended up hitting a stopped car head on. Thankfully, it all happened at a low speed.

    People, nothing is so important that it cannot wait until you find a safe place to pull off of the road.

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  2. I am all in favor of banning hands-on cell phone use of any kinds. So often I have had to avoid swerving drivers who aren't looking at anything but their phones. Thanks for posting this video!

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  3. They just banned texting in VA and banned talking on hand-held phones in DC awhile ago.

    Why neither of them has banned both is beyond me.

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