Itasca, IL – The National Safety Council has announced its support and promotion of April as National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, started last year by FocusDriven. Both organizations take a firm stance on banning cell phone use behind the wheel, including hands-free devices, and are asking organizations to help educate employees about the dangers of distracted driving.
According to NSC estimates, 12 times as many crashes involve cell phone conversations rather than texting. Throughout April, Americans are urged to consider the lives of others on the road and realize that cell conversations behind the wheel can wait. Posters and flyers are available for organizations to display and share with their employees.
The Council believes National Distracted Driving Awareness Month is the perfect opportunity for employers to implement or enhance cell phone policies to protect employees. NSC provides many resources, including a free Cell Phone Policy Kit, to help businesses get started.
NSC and FocusDriven thank FirstGroup and DriveCam for their tremendous support of National Distracted Driving Awareness Month through sponsorship. Each will be sponsoring a webinar, open to the public, on the dangers of cell phone use while driving and the devastation that can result from distracted driving crashes. Register today for the webinars.
National Distracted Driving Awareness Month was introduced as a resolution last year by former Rep. Betsy Markey (D-CO) and passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in a 410-2 vote on March 23, 2010. The resolution mentions 9-year-old Erica Forney, who was struck and killed by a distracted driver in Fort Collins, CO, in November 2008. Erica’s mother, Shelley Forney, is a founding board member of FocusDriven.
More information on the cognitive distraction to the brain and the danger of cell phone conversations can be found at thebrain.nsc.org.
The National Safety Council (www.nsc.org) saves lives by preventing injuries and deaths at work, in homes and communities, and on the roads through leadership, research, education and advocacy.