The CEO of the popular cell phone service provider AT&T, Randall Stephenson, is currently pushing drivers to put down their phones and to help reduce risks of distracted driving car accidents in Boston and elsewhere.
During the Olympics, we saw the commercial of a man in a wheel chair who was suffering from a severe brain injury and was holding a sign with the text “Where r.” Those two words were the reason for his life-altering injuries. He was texting behind the wheel when he was involved in a serious car accident.
This commercial is all a part of the company’s “It Can Wait” campaign, which urges drivers to stop texting while driving.
“This is the text message that caused the car accident that changed my life forever,” said the guy in the commercial.
Our Boston car accident attorneys understand that these kinds of campaigns specifically target our younger drivers as they’re more likely to be involved in distracted driving car accidents. The “It Can Wait” campaign has been going strong since 2009, but advocates are taking the next step. They’re urging all drivers to join them during “No Text on Board — Pledge Day” and make the pledge on September 19th to stop texting behind the wheel, according to CNN.
You don’t have to wait until the 19th of September. You can visit the website and take the pledge today!
Texting while driving has increased by about 50 percent in one year. In 2010, about 20 percent of drivers admitted to texting or emailing while driving, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project. With these confessions, it’s easy to understand why about one out of every five fatal car accidents involves a distracted driver. Teen drivers are doing it a lot more though, as nearly 45 percent admit to doing so.
If you text message behind the wheel, whether you’re reading one or sending one, you’re nearly 25 times more likely to get into a serious car accident.
According to Stephenson, some of his competitors, including Verizon and Sprint, already have anti-texting campaigns, too. He says that he welcomes all of the advocacy he can get!
“This is a dead-serious issue and I don’t mean that as a pun,” said Stephenson.
Cell phone providers aren’t the only ones getting in on the action. Officials with the U.S. Department of Transportation, the wireless-industry trade association CTIA, the National Organizations for Youth Safety and the National Safety Council are in on the fight, too!
According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), only drivers over the age of 18-years-old are allowed to use a hand-held cell phone behind the wheel in the state of Massachusetts. All drivers are prohibited from text messaging while driving. Although it’s written into law, not all drivers are listening and distracted driving car accidents continue to plague our roadways. Make the pledge today and help to keep yourself and everyone else safe!
If you have been injured in a car accident, contact Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers for a free and confidential consultation to discuss your case. Call (617) 777-7777 today!
Additional Resources:
AT&T asks drivers to take no-texting pledge, by Doug Gross, CNN
More Blog Entries:
New England Traffic Safety: Spike in Fatal Car Accidents Reported in Recent Months, Boston Car Accident Lawyer Blog, August 3, 2012
Car Accidents on Routes 24 and 195 Likely, Drivers Blame Road Condition, Boston Car Accident Lawyer Blog, July 28, 2012