The Numbers are Frightening –
Spring is in the air and Summer is not far behind. Each year as the weather warms up, our teenagers begin to participate in some of their most important rites of passage – Prom and Graduation. It is a time of great joy and pride, but it is also a time of great potential danger behind the wheel, as young drivers often disobey important driving laws like texting and driving.
The numbers in our graphic are based on nationwide statistics but are no less frightening in North Carolina. This time of year, with the potential added complication of underage drinking and driving, the percentage of teenage driving fatalities skyrockets compared to the rest of the year.
Let’s just focus on the impact of texting and driving.
Did you know that one in four teenage accidents involved texting and driving? No doubt when you purchased the latest smart phone for your child, you told them about the dangers and they eagerly agreed that they would never text and drive – right?
The reality is different – and the impact is real!
If 25% of teenage accidents involved texting and driving who knows what higher percentage of teens have used their phones while driving and have avoided an accident so far? Are you comfortable with the statistics, and are you willing to gamble the potential safety of your child, say for example, if they are not the driver but the passenger in the car?
If a car is being driven at 55 mph, the average text will take the full length of a football field, roughly five seconds to complete. During that time, the driver will not have their eyes on the road much, if at all, and certainly their attention will be diverted. This is certainly a recipe for disastrous consequences.
There are many ways to address the issue:
- providing the statistics to your child
- removing texting from their phone service
- locking their phone in the glove compartment when they are behind the wheel
Whatever approach works best for you we definitely advocate. We’ve seen each of the above approaches work well. Of course, we are here to help you should the need arise if you or your child was involved in an accident due to the negligence use of texting by the other driver, but our primary concern is that all drivers avoid the pitfalls of texting and driving keeping the roads safer for all.