Community Corner
Texting and Driving: Adults Guiltier Than Teens
A new AT&T survey says that more adults than teens are likely to text while driving. Do you think it's true in Wheaton and Glen Ellyn?
By Ted Schnell, St. Charles Patch
Hey Mom and Dad, and all the other adults out there: Do you text and drive? A new survey by AT&T Wireless indicates you do.
Does the expression “Do as I say, not as I do” ring true here? Perhaps it should it be, “Drive as I say, not as I text.”
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I came across word of the new survery Friday afternoon after completing some training on social media use.
Specifically, I came across a tweet by a Chicago radio station and decided to dig deeper.
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With the National Safety Council attributing more than 100,000 crashes a year to texting and driving, and with 75 percent of teens saying texting and driving is common among their friends, perhaps many assumed the problem was associated most with these youthful drivers.
But the AT&T Wireless survey indicates otherwise.
According to the survey, 43 percent of teen drivers admitted to texting and driving. But there are far fewer teen drivers than adult drivers — and 49 percent of adult drivers admitted they text and drive.
By the way, 98 percent of those surveyed acknowledged that texting or sending an email while driving is dangerous.
AT&T quotes some grim statistics as proof of their belief:
- Those who text and drive are 23 times more likely to be in a crash, according to Virginia Tech Transportation Institute Research.
- Texting and driving is more dangerous than other cellphone uses — talking, dialing or reaching for the phone, according to The Pew Internet & American Life Project.
- There was a 50 percent spike in texting while driving in 2010, The Pew Internet & American Life Project says.
Related:
- AT&T survey: Texting While Driving
- AT&T campaign: ItCanWait.com
- AT&T: Try the Texting and Driving Simulator
- Huffington Post’s The Blog: An Instant Can Change Your Life... Your Life Can Change in an Instant
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