Every day I’m nearly run off the road by some driver texting with one hand on the wheel…. the other wrapped around his or her phone.  Sure, I know it is dangerous.   Sure, it makes me crazy.  But it also made me crazy the other day when I  watched the guy in front of me swaying in and out of his lane while taking his shirt off.  (Yes, I could actually see that was what he was doing — and when I drove past him — just to get away from him — I confirmed — he was, in fact, shirtless…..)  it also frustrated the heck out of me that he was weaving while reaching across the passenger seat for his food.

I see people chatting on their phones every day.  And in some states, like California, talking on the phone while driving, without a hands-free device, can get you a ticket.  But what about all of the other things people do while driving that provide distractions?  Eating, GPS, applying makeup, hassling with kids?  These are all still ‘legal’ activities….  what are you thoughts on cell phone and hands free device laws?

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More than half of mothers admit to driving distracted.

I admit.  I’ve driven distracted, with my kids in the car.

I’ve started reminding myself that the two most precious things in the world to me are in the backseat whenever I feel the urge to do something while driving, and I’m doing much better.  Like me, though, it appears lots of moms don’t stop multitasking once they get behind the wheel.

Good Housekeeping partnered with Yahoo Shine! to find out whether moms are multitasking during driving and 55% said yes.  What’s distracting them?

• Listening to music
• Talking to another person in the car
• Eating or drinking
• Talking on a cell phone
• Sending or receiving text messages

One of the more common, and more dangerous, distractions cited was cell phone use.  I live in Georgia, where we can still use our phones and are not required to use hands-free devices, so I’m guilty of driving and chatting on the phone, as are most of the people I know. Continue reading »

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Teens and distracted driving will be the subject of a commerical during the MTV Video Music Awards this summer

I’d like to write that I’m not guilty of distracted driving, but I am, and I’m most certainly not proud of it. It’s not against the law to talk on a cell phone while driving in Colorado. And while it may or not be illegal to check emails on a smart phone (although I’m pretty sure it is), it’s still wrong and yet, I do it. I’m trying to cut down and/or not do it at all, but I’d be less than honest if I didn’t say it happens at times.

Part of my impetus to quit is thinking about how my daughters will one day become drivers and I don’t want to set bad examples for them (it is definitely illegal in Colorado for teen drivers to talk or text while driving). Distracted driving is so incredibly risky and dumb, and teens (or anyone else for that matter, really) don’t need any excuse to not pay full attention when they’re driving what could be a death machine.

The Automobile Association of America and the state of Minnesota get the risks of distracted driving, particularly for teens, which is why they’ve launched a contest challenging high school drivers to produce an ad about the dangers of it. The winner will pocket $1,000 and see their spot air during the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards in August. How smart and cool is that?

Continue reading »

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Do you talk on your cell phone while driving?

Yesterday a law went into effect in New York State for people who talk on a cell phone while driving. Those drivers will now have two points tacked onto on their license, in addition to the $100 fine, which was enacted in 2001 when New York became the first state in the nation to ban hand-held phone use while driving.

But for those who still feel the need to talk on the phone and drive at the same time, using a hands-free device remains legal. While some might think this is a safer way to drive, I think it may even pose more risks.

Continue reading »

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Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Remembers Alex Brown

Actress Emma Roberts and teen sensation Justin Bieber appeared on ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition last night in honor of the Remember Alex Brown Foundation, an organization created to educate teens about the dangers of texting while driving.  The Extreme Makeover crew rebuilt the Brown home in Lubbock, TX, “now occupied by the remaining three family members, Jeanne, Johnny Mac, and Alex’s 12-year-old sister Katrina,” television blog Zap2It reports.  Jeanne and Johnny Brown decided to create the Remember Alex Brown foundation the day their daughter, 17-year-old Alex, was killed while texting and driving last year.

“I chose to do it that day at the hospital,” her dad Johnny said.  After losing his eldest daughter, he thought to himself, “We have to put the [wrecked] truck on a trailer, and we have to go to schools and tell people about the dangers of texting and driving.” Continue reading »

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Would you support a ban on cell phones in cars?

The Week reported yesterday that the Obama administration “might call for an outright ban on using all cell phones, even hands-free, while driving.”  Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says he “wants drivers paying attention to the road, not talking on the phone or texting, so he’s considering pushing for a ban.”

Critics say “cell phones are no worse than other distractions, such as radios” – or even our own children.  But I think a ban on phone use while driving is in the best interest of the general public. Continue reading »

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Young male drivers may have a reputation for putting the pedal to the metal and being reckless on the road, but a new survey by Allstate Insurance Co. reveals that it might actually be the girls we need to watch out for.

A  national online survey of over 1,000 teens revealed that 48% of girls say they are likely to drive 10 miles over the speed limit.  For boys, that number was quite a bit lower at just 36%. And these girls aren’t just driving faster, they are also driving tougher.  16% said they would characterize their own driving style as “aggressive” as compared to 9% back in 2005. Continue reading »

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