April has been designated as "Distracted Driver Awareness Month" within the United States, it is reported that distracted driving claims the lives of approximately 3,500 people every year. Distracted Driving is considered any activity that diverts your attention from driving. Texting is the most common distraction and sending or reading one text takes your eyes off the road for a minimum of 5 seconds. Driving at 55 MPH, those 5 seconds are enough time to drive the length of a football field with your eyes closed. It is reported that younger drivers ages 16 to 25, are the most vulnerable to Distracted Driving, according to a study by AAA, 94% of teen drivers acknowledge the dangers, however, 35% of those same teens admit to doing it anyway and 21% of teen drivers involved in fatal accident were distracted by their cell phones. Please take the extra time to speak to your friends and family about this issue and wait until you arrive at your destination to answer that text or read the email on your phone, if the message is that important, find a safe place to pull over off the roadway and answer the text there. Remember "One Text or Call Could Wreck It All", put the phone down and drive.
