By: Carolyn Coleman
Now that my son is 15 years old, he has this idea that he will be driving himself to school as of next school year. The thought of this sends chills through my body.
Over the past few months I’ve taken a special interest in watching drivers and the things they do while they are behind the wheel. I see people with books on the steering wheel. However, most of what I see is drivers with one hand on the wheel while holding the phone in the other hand. On my daily drive to and from work I’m amazed at the number of drivers I see texting.
Of course, as I am writing this I decided to go to the Internet to see what is being said about this new trend:
“Texting while driving is a growing trend, and a national epidemic, quickly becoming one of the country’s top killers.”
“We found out she was injured by a man that was texting and driving.”
“Texting and drivingis a scourge that jeopardizes the lives of every single person who uses public roads.”
“Texting while driving is a major cause of traffic crashes and fatalities. Texting drivers are 23 times more likely to be involved in an auto accident than non-texting.”
“At least 59% of young people know that texting and driving is dangerous… but 46% still admit to driving while distracted.”
“Bans on texting while driving cut traffic deaths by 3 percent for all drivers, and 11 percent for those between 15- and 21-years-old”
I feel as though every day I am adding topics to my list of things to talk to my son about. It’s so true that the older they get, the tougher the discussion becomes. For now, the texting and driving issue is at the top of our list. As a parent, I try to make sure I talk to my son about life issues. I like to keep the line of communication open so that he always feels comfortable coming to talk to me.
My son and I are on board with the no texting while driving ban in my car. I welcome you to get on board with this idea, too.
Community Voices for Health 