Last week I was almost side swiped by an 18 wheeler.
Here I am, driving down the interstate, traffic is flowing pretty good right around at the posted speed of 65 MPH. By nature I am a very defensive driver and don’t like to be near these big rigs even on a good day. This day was no different, I was in the left lane and the truck was in the center lane. I kicked up the speed a bit so I could get past him quickly. Just as I got mid-way past him he started veering over into my lane, I mean all his wheels from his left side where in my lane. I was now using the emergency lane to insure he didn’t hit me. I got past him and looked in my rear view mirror to see the driver of a 18-wheeler with both his hands on a cell phone. It appeared he was texting and driving with his elbows. This clearly explained to me why he was drifting into other lanes as he was driving.
The hazards of someone using a cell phone while driving is not just dangerous for you, it is dangerous to pedestrians, children, and those driving around you. Studies show that texting blocks your peripheral vision, it is also proven to be the cause of many accidents that have ended in fatalities.
When I got the below picture in my inbox I thought what a fantastic message to write as a quick post to help get out the message.
Oprah is also a huge proponent of this and I encourage you to go here to sign the pledge that you will not use your phone and/or text while driving.
There is no text or phone call worth risking your life or the life of someone else.
Please don’t text and drive, remember, your friends and family are on the road too, how would you feel if they were hit by someone texting?
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I decided to do something about teen (and adult) distracted driving after my three year old daughter was nearly run down right in front of me last fall by a texting driver. That incident changed me but I don’t hate texting. Texting is here regardless of how I feel. 72% of teens text every single day – some over 3000 times a month. The texting drivers I spoke with, including teens and truckers, all said that laws and Big Brother type software devices that “lock down” their phones would not deter them at all. So I built a tool called OTTER to compliment the efforts of legislation and public education. OTTER helps the individual manage their texting at home, in school, at the office, or, most importantly, on our highways.
In response to the epidemic of teen texting and driving, we started our Break the Habit Campaign (http://BTHnow.org ) to raise awareness of this problem thereby educating us all of the dangers. Did you know that 50% of teens interviewed admitted to texting while driving? If 50% admitted to it…how many are actually doing it?
Best,
Erik Wood, owner
OTTER LLC
http://www.OTTERapp.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVn2vRYaSAU
Erik, thank you for visiting and reading. Thank God you and your 3 year old were lucky. So many families are not. I have checked out your website as well as the youtube video. Your app looks very good. Glad I have an Android, I have downloaded your app for myself. Thank you for what you are doing to combat texting while driving!
It would appear that more people are concerned about texting whilst driving than they are about divorce. What does this say about us as a society?
Rebecca, wow, what a great comment. In the last few days I noticed that people seem to be more concerned about what basketball player is going to play for which team rather than about what is really matters in life like family & commitment. That is why I write about divorce often, I hate divorce. Yes, there are other things in life that are important as well, one of which is the dangers of texting. I felt that writing about texting while driving was important because it does effect so many and puts others in danger by not paying attention while driving, just as bad as drunk driving. Texting also effects lives if texting to someone other than your spouse with less than honorable intentions (soon to be an upcoming blog topic). Texting can cause much damage if not done properly. Thank for commenting.