With smartphones rising in popularity, more and more people are choosing to text and drive. It is now easier than ever to get sucked into a device and miss what’s happening around you. This can have serious repercussions, and anything that happens as a result of someone texting and driving is completely preventable. Your text can wait. Here are 5 reasons not to text and drive.
1. It puts other people’s lives at risk.
When you choose to text and drive, you take the lives of others into your hands. This includes both the passengers in your vehicle and those in other cars. You could potentially miss someone merging onto the highway or coming into your lane. If you’re looking down at your phone, you will miss what’s happening right in front of you. You could end up seriously endangering someone else, and it’s just not worth it.
2. It puts your own life at risk.
Plain and simple, you are putting yourself in harm’s way when you pick up your cellphone while driving. Not only are you losing control of your vehicle by taking your hands off the wheel, but you are intentionally looking away from the road. Looking away for even a split second can be the difference between life and death, either for you or someone else on the road. If you’re driving at 55 miles per hour and look down at your phone for a few seconds, that is the equivalent of driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed.
3. It is almost as dangerous as driving under the influence.
An article from Cambridge Mobile Telematics states that 9 people die every day from distracted driving accidents. This number may be smaller than the number of people who are killed in drunk driving accidents; however, it’s still too high of a number.
4. It is illegal to text and drive.
In many states, there are laws in place incriminating those who text and drive. Even if you do not live in a state where this is the case, treat it as if it were. Not only could there be serious consequences regarding your life or the lives of others, but you could face serious legal repercussions.
5. You are 23 times more likely to be involved in an accident.
Studies have shown that drivers who text and drive increase their likelihood of getting into an accident by 23 times. Looking at your phone for a split second behind the wheel can have dire consequences, and it would have been completely preventable.
When you’re on the roads this holiday season, we urge you not to text and drive. Please, put down your phone and stay alert while driving. Your text can wait. At Wave Express, we are committed to keeping our drivers safe on the roads. We wish you safe travels!
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