AT&T Offers Tips for Distracted Driving Awareness Month

by | Apr 14, 2016 | Distracted driving

it-can-wait_6Surfing the Net. Checking email. Posting to social media accounts. These are just a few of the things drivers are doing while behind the wheel. According to research from AT&T, 7-in-10 people admit to engaging in smartphone activities while driving. In light of Distracted Driving Awareness Month, AT&T is sharing the following tips to help prevent smartphone distracted driving:

  • Take the pledge at www.ItCanWait.com to keep your eyes on the road, not on your phone.
  • Use a mobile app to curb your temptation to text behind the wheel. For example, DriveMode is a free app that silences incoming text message alerts and sends an auto-reply letting the sender know you’re behind the wheel.
  • If you have a teen driver, take advantage of parental controls like Smart Limits that allow you to determine when and how your teen will use their device. Or consider a device like Car Connection, which, in addition to letting you know where your vehicle is and how it’s being driven, allows you to limit the use of a mobile device while the vehicle is being driven.
  • Watch the short, but powerful Close to Home and Fletcher’s Drive videos that show how glancing at your smartphone for a split second can change lives forever. Both of the “It Can Wait” campaign videos can be found on You Tube.
  • Check out the “It Can Wait” Virtual Reality App at www.ItCanWait.com. The simulation shows the real consequences of looking at your phone while driving.
  • Get involved with the “It Can Wait” movement and educate others in your community and workplace about the dangers of smartphone distracted driving. You could just save a life.

ATTAT&T started the “It Can Wait” campaign in 2010 to increase awareness about the dangers of texting while driving. But as smartphones have evolved, so have our interactions with them. As a result, AT&T expanded the “It Can Wait” movement in 2015 to address multiple smartphone driving distractions following research that showed people engage in the following smartphone activities behind the wheel:

  • Texting (61%)
  • Emailing (33%)
  • Surfing the net (28%)
  • Posting to Facebook (27%)
  • Snapping a selfie/photo (17%)
  • Tweeting (14%)
  • Using Instagram (14%)
  • Shooting a video (12%)
  • Using Snapchat (11%)
  • Video chatting (10%)

So the next time you reach for your smartphone behind the wheel, remember no text, email, post or glance is worth a life. It can wait.