Handing a phone to your child has a lot of digital dangers. But, there is another danger that could put them in physical harm: distracted driving.
“We know all the dangers of texting and driving, so why do we still do it? The only answers I can come up is that you haven’t killed anyone yet, or you haven’t killed yourself or been seriously injured in an accident involving texting and driving,” said DPS Lieutenant Bryan Witt.
The numbers back up that statement. In 2016 alone, distracted driving killed 3,450 people.
“You’re six times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash if you’re texting and driving than if you’re under the influence of alcohol. That’s why they call it the new ‘teen drunk driving.’ It’s more dangerous than driving at a .08, believe it or not,” said Lt. Witt.
Not to mention that it takes around five seconds to read and send a response to a text. In those five seconds at 55 mph, you can drive the length of a football field.
Yet every day, roughly 481,000 drivers are using a cellphone behind the wheel. Plus, when there is a fatality accident involving distracted driving, 25 percent of the time, it will involve a teenager.
“That’s the problem with texting,” said Lt. Witt, “it is a preventable accident.”
Not to mention you may have the tools to stop the distraction on the thing that is distracting you.
iPhones come with an app called “do not disturb while driving” pre-installed on all phones.
“As soon as your phone senses that you are driving, it cuts off everything and will even give you a reminder at the very end with you’ve parked your car to say, ‘Hey, don’t forget to respond to these people,’ and it automatically sends a text message out to the people that have tried to contact you that says, ‘Hey, I’m driving, I’ll get back to you in a few minutes,'” said Julia Jack, mobile supervisor for Best Buy in Lubbock.
If you don’t already have it set up, just go to settings and find the ‘do not disturb’ tab, then scroll down to ‘do not disturb while driving’ and turn it on. Android users can download a free app that will do the same thing.
“That’s called ‘Driving Detective,’ and this one works just like that. It’ll stop any notifications or any sounds that are coming in to let you know that you’re getting these texts and calls,” said Jack.
Both Jack and Witt also said that it’s important for parents to talk to their children about the dangers of distracted driving. Witt also recommends parents and children sit down and sign an agreement where you both agree to put your phone down and not touch it until you reach your destination.
Find out more about TTU K-12 here.
