Young drivers nationwide are pledging to take two seconds to turn
off their cell phones and other wireless devices before getting behind
the wheel to drive today, as part of National Two-Second Turnoff Day.
The day is being promoted by AAA, Seventeen magazine and the U.S. Department of Transportation with events in Washington, D.C., and New York.
According to a recent survey by AAA and Seventeen,
almost nine in 10 teen drivers (86 percent) have driven while
distracted, even though 84 percent of teen drivers know it's dangerous.
Seventeen held a viral video contest and the winner is "It Can Wait,"
Ya girl, Emily Langston a.k.a E-Milli, brings a fresh new jam to
help people become more aware of the dangers of driving while
distracted. The refrain is "You double your chances of getting in an
accident by looking away for just two seconds." The video follows.
"Today's teens are heavily distracted by their cell phones and a car full of friends while they are driving," said Seventeen magazine Editor in Chief Ann Shoket.
"We hope that on this Two-Second Turnoff Day we are showing them how
easy it is to put down the phone and keep their focus on the road so
everyone gets where they are going safely."
AAA
offers several tools to help parents discuss the dangers of distracted
driving with teens including StartSmart, an interactive program to help
parents and teens safely navigate the learning-to-drive process. For
more information on the free online program, visit TeenDriving.AAA.com.
AAA has
also partnered with MonkeySee.com, an instructional video website, to
produce eight educational videos on how to avoid common distractions
behind the wheel. These videos can be found at MonkeySee.com/play/17097-how-to-avoid-distracted-driving.
Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for teen drivers, and an August 2010 survey of teen distracted driving behaviors released by AAA and Seventeen magazine revealed some disturbing facts, including:
- Of those teen drivers surveyed, 60 percent have talked on a cell phone and 28 percent have sent a text message while driving.
- Teen drivers who text while driving reported sending, on average, 23 text messages while driving in the past month.
- More
than one-third of teen drivers (36 percent) believe they have been
involved in a near-crash because of their own or someone else's
distracted driving.