Driver inattention is a leading cause of traffic crashes, responsible for about 80 percent of all collisions, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Cell phones are the #1 driver distraction, contributing to hundreds of thousands of crashes and thousands of deaths each year. This affects real people, real lives. Watch and hear the stories of the families featured above …
Talking on cell phones distracts our minds from driving. Beyond where our eyes and hands are while driving, it's the conversation that distracts. This is called cognitive distraction, and this is why hands-free and handheld phones have a similar crash risk – hands-free is not safer.
As an example of the research on the risk of cognitive distraction, see these MRI pictures of the brain from a Carnegie Mellon University study where people listened to sentences while driving on a simulator. The pictures show that just listening decreases an area of the brain also used for driving by 37%:
These real-life videos show how cell phones can distract from driving. See examples of all types of distraction caused by cell phones – eyes off the road, hands off the wheel, mind off of driving:
Teens are at very high risk of crashing while using cell phones and PDAs. They are the generation most likely to text. See this Dr. Phil interview with a texting teen and her concerned mom. This popular video shows the challenges of overcoming an overconfident teen driving mindset:
NSC Video Series: "Understanding Distracted Driving"
A series of 12 short videos to address the most frequently asked questions about cell phone use while driving. All videos are free for you to download or available via YouTube.
Video: It Takes Just Seconds ... Rob and Shari Reynolds discuss the loss of their 16-year-old daughter, Cady, who was killed in a car crash involving another teen driver texting behind the wheel.
Faces of Distracted Driving videos from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
"Put it Down" distracted driving campaign materials from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
"yeah" or "where u at" These are the last words some texting drivers saw before they died. See AT&T's "It Can Wait" campaign, in partnership with NSC.
Other Resources
FocusDriven Families who lost loved ones in crashes involving cell phones launched a group to prevent this from happening to others. Join their movement.
New York Times – Driven to Distraction A Pulitzer Prize-winning series about cell phones and driving. See all articles here.
Distraction.gov The U.S. Dept. of Transportation's distracted driving website.
Car Talk's Distracted Driving Center shares the distracted driving science in a fun way.
NSC on CNN -- Watch the Video NSC's Dave Teater and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood discuss cell phones and driving on CNN's Campbell Brown show.
One Man. One Bike. 16,000 Miles. Ride the Americas. In August-October 2009, Tony Anschutz travelled a two-month, 16,000-mile solo motorcycle adventure in the western U.S., Canada and Mexico, to raise awareness about the dangers of cell phone use while driving.
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