About a year, or so, ago, I was in my car looking at my phone at a stoplight. A cop pulled up beside me and glared at me, and I had the presence of mind to appear to focus elsewhere very quickly and to put my phone down.
From then on, I did not look at my phone while in my car unless or until I could either pull over, or wait until I got to my destination.
Today I received my copy of the AAA (Auto Club) magazine Westways, I guess it's the edition for the western states, and it contained a story about a young woman who had been killed by a distracted driver; a woman on her cell phone, most likely texting.
The article made me cry, as it described a life full of hope and a young girl, just out of college, whose parents were, and are, devastated by the loss of their only daughter. It made me think, how would I deal with something like that?
Please, please, do not use your phone while you are driving, it is simply not worth the potential devastation and immeasurable sorrow that can ensue from such an unnecessary compulsion. There is nothing, nothing that cannot wait until you are in safe circumstances that is worth the risk of driving distracted
I have done these things in the past myself, but no more. Please consider the risks of this behavior.
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10 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.Distraction (like texting and using the phone in another way is causing the most accidents ever. Every morning during the commute there is so much disturbing, mostly by small accidents (head-tail). People don't want to learn. I'm glad my iPhone is equipped with "Don't disturb, I'm driving", which blocks the phone as a matter of attention. As a passenger I can unblock it.
Gert
Level 7
Apr 30, 2018
1
As a cyclist in London I see this all the time. If their window is open and I'm passing them I helpfully remind them that they face a £120 fine and points on their licence if caught. Reactions range from embarrassment to abuse. Once I passed such a driver and just after, I noticed a policeman on his beat - I mimicked the 'phone me' gesture to him and pointed my thumb over my shoulder at the car behind me. I looked back to see it being pulled over. That actually made my day.
Gareth
Level 7
Apr 24, 2018
3
I drive for a living so I hear you. Believe it or not I see a great amount of people texting and driving. One time I saw a woman get into her car and strap her cell phone onto her left hand at the steering wheel before she drove away. Please, if you have to do this buy the hands free device that plays your phone through your radio.
DenoPenno
Level 9
Apr 23, 2018
1
So, you know how difficult it is. I have long held that driving is one of the most complex things humans do, at least when done right.
Unfortunately, research has shown that hands free is just as dangerous. Everyone that I know is well aware that I will not answer my phone if I'm driving.
Now, if I can only get my sister to understand the dangers of distracted driving. She does it, and keeps insisting that she is a wonderful driver with great reflexes. I guess she forgets the times she's almost had an accident when trying to voice text or talking to her daughter.
When I am driving, it is all business. It has always been that way. I have spent more time on the road than most people and even some long haul truckers. Now pushing 78, still driving, still alive, only three accidents since I was 14, not a one my fault. If my cell phone beckons, I wait until I have a chance to pull off the road. These phones cleverly store the numbers of missed calls, so I don't have to worry about it. Good advice, my friend. Very good advice.
evidentialist
Level 8
Apr 23, 2018
1
Thank you, and kudos to you on your driving record. That's something to be proud of.
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