Distracted Driving and Texting While Driving in the Media

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D.I.A.D. Media Coverage 2010-2011: GlobalTV BC (Elaine Yong) – Philip Till Show CKNW – The Vancouver Sun (Gillian Shaw) – CBC Radio (Lisa Christiansen, On The Coast & Jo-Ann Roberts, All Points West) – CFAX 1070 (Dave Dickson) – News1130 Radio: Mike Lloyd Distracted Driving Clip #1 & Mike Lloyd Distracted Driving Clip #2 – The Bill Good Show CKNW Talk/980 – The Province Article #1 & The Province Article #2

D.I.A.D. Media Coverage 2012:- The Vancouver Sun (Gerry Bellett) Article #1 & The Vancouver Sun (Gerry Bellett) Article #2 – The Bill Good Show CKNW Talk/980 - News1130Radio (Reaon Ford & Tammy Moyer Live On-Air Jan. 5 @ 9AM)

Dec. 8, 2011 As U.S. road deaths drop, more pedestrians getting struck Experts are puzzled by the increase, which comes as road fatalities in most categories are dropping. Possible explanations for the increase vary: More pedestrians are distracted by cellphones and other hand-held communication devices. There has been only anecdotal evidence of “pedestrian distraction” as a factor in fatalities, such as a 31-year-old woman killed in March in San Ysidro, Calif., while crossing the street in a crosswalk. Police said the woman was talking on her cellphone and ignored a red light.

Dec. 8, 2011 2010 traffic safety numbers indicate progress; driver distraction remains a problem But if someone you know was among the 32,885 people killed on our roadways last year, you know that even one death is too many.  Whatever progress these numbers indicate, they also tell us that we have more work to do to continue to protect Americans on our roadways. This record-breaking decline occurred even as Americans drove nearly 3 trillion miles last year.  It’s a tribute to the tireless advocacy of our safety agencies and partner organizations over decades.

Dec. 8, 2011 Police pull in drunk, drugged, and bad drivers The Langley RCMP cast their nets for impaired drivers, and they came up with drunks, distracted drivers, people not wearing seatbelts, and even a cyclist. On Friday, Dec. 2, officers from the local RCMP along with the CN Police and other regional agencies launched the first weekend of the year-end crackdown.

Dec. 7, 2011 Still texting and driving In a 12-hour period last Friday, police at one Langley location caught 28 people using their cell phones or some other illegal distraction while driving.

Dec. 7, 2011 Don’t be a distracted driver Q: Hands free or holding the phone, if I’m engaged in talking won’t I be just as distracted either way? Like so many drivers I sometimes drive with one hand on the wheel therefore I can’t see much difference safety wise. A: You raise an issue that many people bring to my attention when I stop them for using their cellphones while driving. The first part of your question has a simple answer: Yes.

Dec. 6, 2011 Text-Messaging Tragedy Leads to Legislative Triumph in Georgia The future was ripe with possibilities for 18-year-old Caleb Sorohan, that is until a fateful December day in 2009. A recent graduate of Morgan County High School, Sorohan was killed in a car accident that authorities revealed after investigation, he himself caused. While driving through Hard labor Creek State Park in Rutledge, Georgia, Sorohan’s car crossed the centerline and collided head on with an SUV pulling a horse trailer. The other driver was injured in the car accident, but Sorohan died with a phone in his lap. He had been texting while driving.

Dec. 2, 2011 Drivers fear cellphone users and texters more than drunks behind the wheel according to new survey California drivers ranked cell phone users as the biggest safety risk to the road in 2011, outranking last year’s fear of speeding and aggressive driving by nearly half. A surveyed 38.8 per cent of California drivers listed drivers who text and talk on their phone as the biggest threat on the road, more than drivers who drive drunk, according to a survey released Thursday by the Office of Traffic Safety.

Nov. 30, 2011 Drop It And Drive event raises awareness at Sullivan Heights Secondary Surrey firefighters were on hand for a mock car accident rescue exercise at Sullivan Heights Secondary Tuesday, as part of a charity event marking the National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims. Entering its second year, Drop It And Drive commemorated the National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims (Nov. 23) by hosting its first annual “Show You Care With Coats” charity event on Nov. 29 at Sullivan Heights Secondary.

Nov. 23, 2011 Distracted driving can have deadly consequences The nature of this subject may offend or frighten some readers. And that made the presentation all the more potent and powerful for students at Bashaw, Ponoka Composite and St. Augustine high schools. The presenters held nothing back as retired Surrey fire captain Tim Baillie, Ponoka RCMP Const. Lisa Niven, and BC mother-turned-advocate Karen Bowman related stats to faces and stories of victims killed by distracted driving. “We’re not teachers and we’re sure as hell not going to talk like teachers,” said Baillie.

Nov. 23, 2011 DOT announces final rule on hand-held cell phone ban Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Nov. 23 announced a final rule specifically prohibiting interstate truck and bus drivers from using hand-held cell phones while operating their vehicles. “When drivers of large trucks, buses and hazardous materials take their eyes off the road for even a few seconds, the outcome can be deadly,” said LaHood. “I hope that this rule will save lives by helping commercial drivers stay laser-focused on safety at all times while behind the wheel.”

Nov. 21, 2011 B.C. Lions mourn loss of Dylan Reichelt The B.C. Lions will begin their hometown Grey Cup week on a sombre note. After winning Sunday’s West Division final, the Lions will attend a Monday memorial service for Dylan Reichelt, the son of long-time trainer Bill Reichelt. Dylan, 18, was killed recently in a car crash. He had frequently worked for the Lions on game days.

Nov. 18, 2011 Fairbanks man sentenced in DUI, texting case A man was sentenced to serve two years in jail Friday afternoon in what may be the first Interior Alaska prosecution for driving while intoxicated and distracted by a cell phone. Roger Dean Ostbloom, 40, caused a serious head-on collision last January on Phillips Field Road when he sent a text message while driving and collided with a vehicle driven by Adam Strom, who suffered a fractured hip, torn tendons and ligaments and other injuries to his back and shoulder.

Nov. 13, 2011 Son of B.C. Lions trainer killed in Langley car crash The son of B.C. Lions head trainer Bill Reichelt died in a car crash Saturday night when a car in which he was a passenger rolled and hit a tree. Dylan Reichelt, 18, was one of two people in a black BMW that lost control in heavy rain near 198th Street and 36th Avenue in Langley.

Nov. 9, 2011 Do we need a law for common sense? I’ve read a number of stories on the effects of texting while driving – a recent story in People magazine immediately comes to mind – and I was taken aback by just how huge and deadly a problem it has become, especially among tech-savvy and perhaps even tech-dependent teens. Sadly and needlessly, many people have lost their lives because of this careless and selfish habit. Laws are one thing, but this is an education that needs to begin at home and in our schools.

Nov. 7, 2011 Woman Gets 10 Years For Crash That Killed Boys Alex and Maliki — just four and five years old — were killed when Brown hit McNeese head on south of Red Oak. Court records said Brown — 18 years old at the time — was traveling at 74 mph in a 55 mph zone, texting on a cellphone and passing in a no-passing zone. “I promised my children I would protect them, and she made me break that promise to them,” McNeese said.

Nov. 6, 2011 Collier judge allows enhanced damages in suit alleging driver was texting in fatal crash Numerous studies show texting while driving is far more dangerous, increasing the risk of collision by 23 times. Based on that argument and other compelling evidence, Collier Circuit Judge Hugh Hayes recently granted a motion to allow a North Naples widow to seek punitive damages against a driver who was accused of texting a co-worker when he killed 62-year-old bicyclist James L. Caskey Jr. in August 2008.

Nov. 4, 2011 Texting while driving is deadly Last month, the three-day interruption of BlackBerry services led to an unanticipated consequence seen halfway around the world. In Dubai, traffic accidents fell 20 percent on the days BlackBerry users were unable to use its messaging service. In Abu Dhabi, accidents fell 40 percent and there were no fatal crashes. Police officials linked this dramatic fall in traffic accidents to the fact that BlackBerry services were unavailable.

Nov. 2, 2011 Texting teen killed in western Pa. crash On the same day the Pennsylvania Senate passed a bill that would make such behavior a crime, state police say a western Pennsylvania teen was texting when she crashed the car she was driving into a tree and died.

Oct. 25, 2011 One person dead after head-on collision A 23 year old man is dead after his car hit a semi-truck around 10 o’clock Monday night. Though the investigation is still underway, Langley RCMP Sergeant Ravinder Pawar says it appears the man’s car crossed the centre line.

Oct. 24, 2011 Does the new iPhone’s “Siri” make texting while driving legit? When Apple introduced its new iPhone 4S earlier this month, tech analysts raved about the phone’s voice-activated personal assistant, nicknamed “Siri.”  One thing they loved was how Siri can be used to dictate text messages without typing — or read incoming texts aloud — a convenience that seemed perfect for life behind a steering wheel. There’s just one problem.

Oct. 23, 2011 Technology, laws and sharing experiences help to combat texting & driving Wil Craig didn’t text while driving, but he never minded when his friends did. “I didn’t even care,” he said. That changed nearly four years ago after Craig was seriously injured in a wreck on Ind. 56 near Jasper when the driver with whom Craig was riding tried to answer a text message. Craig, now 21 and living in Louisville’s Clifton neighborhood, still needs help to live on his own. He speaks slowly and forgets easily. But he has made it his mission to urge motorists to ignore their mobile phones.

Oct. 19, 2011 Police: Intoxicated Border Patrol agent was texting before causing fatal wreck A 21-year-old man left on life support after an early Sunday wreck died Tuesday night, opening the door for a Border Patrol agent to have an intoxication assault charge against him upgraded to intoxication manslaughter. Police believe Parada was not only under the influence of alcohol at the time of the wreck, but was also texting, according to information found on three separate police reports written by an officer involved in the wreck, an investigator and a third officer who witnessed the collision.

Oct. 17, 2011  Why distracted driving is becoming a fatal problem The police investigation determined the 20-year-old driver never touched her brakes and was travelling 77km/h when she hit the other vehicle. The crash cost a 12-year-old boy his life. Witnesses told investigators the driver was not looking down, dialing on the phone, or texting. She was looking straight ahead talking on her cellphone as she sped past four cars and a school bus stopped at the traffic lights next to her.

Oct. 12, 2011 Canadians ignore distracted driving laws Despite distracted driving legislation now in place in every Canadian province, a new survey suggests drivers aren’t paying nearly enough attention to the laws – or the road, for that matter. Allstate Insurance Company of Canada had school students and Allstate agents in nine different Canadian cities take part in the company’s Action Against Distraction “Blow the Whistle” campaign Sept. 28, 2011.

Oct. 8, 2011 Police dish out 2,100 distracted driving tickets Metro Vancouver RCMP handed out 2,100 tickets last month during a crackdown on drivers texting and talking on hand-held cellphones. “We focused on distracted driving because kids were heading back to school, and we wanted to make sure drivers kept their eyes on the road, and not on their phones,” Supt. Norm Gaumont, head of traffic services for the RCMP in the Lower Mainland, said in a statement Friday.

Oct. 7, 2011 Calgary police hand out 100 distracted driving tickets in first 2 weeks Calgary police officers handed out 100 distracted driving tickets in the first two weeks after the provincial legislation came into effect Sept. 1. That figure is the first indication of how many tickets are being written under the new law and will grow next week when Calgary police finish counting all tickets issued in its first month in effect.

Oct. 7, 2011 Top 10 distracted driving excuses It’s illegal to use your phone while driving, but some drivers still aren’t getting the message. More than 3,500 tickets were handed out during a crackdown on distracted driving last month and police heard some pretty absurd excuses. ICBC says one of the most popular was “This is a bogus law.”

Oct. 6, 2011 Safety activist hails study on texting A new study that shows texting while driving is even more dangerous than was previously thought doesn’t surprise distracteddriving foe Karen Bowman of Surrey. “The study adds credibility to the message we’re trying to get out there,” said Bowman, the founder of DropItAndDrive.com, of the dangers of not concentrating on driving. The study, done by the Texas Transportation Institute and released Wednesday, involved measuring 42 drivers’ reaction times when they were texting, both in a lab and then on a road course.

Oct. 5, 2011 Texting while driving doubles reaction times, study finds Distracted driving foe Karen Bowman isn’t surprised results from a new study show texting while driving is even more dangerous than was previously thought. Bowman, the founder of DropItAndDrive.com, just worries that because the study is American, it might not have the same impact in Canada. “The study adds credibility to the message we’re trying to get out there,” said Bowman of the dangers of not concentrating on driving. “But I’m frustrated I’m not seeing more happening in Canada.”

Oct. 5, 2011 New study says texting doubles a driver’s reaction time Researchers at the Texas Transportation Institute have determined that a driver’s reaction time is doubled when distracted by reading or sending a text message. The study reveals how the texting impairment is even greater than many experts believed, and demonstrates how texting drivers are less able to react to sudden roadway hazards.

Oct. 5, 2011 Erratic driver arrested with open can of beer as 12-year-old son looks on A Surrey man is facing drunk driving charges after he was stopped by police while driving through Chilliwack on Highway 1 with an open beer in his hand and his 12-year-old son in his passenger’s seat. The white 2007 GMC Yukon was reported to have been weaving between the lanes of the highway, straddling the centre line and driving at inconsistent speeds.

Oct. 4, 2011 Pedestrians hit by flying truck canopy in ‘scary’ South Surrey accident Four people were rushed to hospital — two of them pedestrians — following a spectacular crash in South Surrey Tuesday morning that witnesses say was caused by a car running a red light. “It was carnage, it was scary to see,” said witness Peter Manchulenko, who was sitting three cars back on 148th, just before his light changed from red to green. After motorists heading down 148th got the green, he said, a grey Nissan driven by a young woman “came flying through the red light” along 24th and hit a white pickup truck, flipping it on its side.

Oct. 3, 2011 Distracted driving a serious risk for BC workers According to WorkSafeBC statistics, vehicle crashes are the number one cause of work-related deaths in B.C. On average, 30 workers in the province are killed each year while driving. Distracted driving, such as cellphone use, plays a key role in these deaths. “As government, we have established aggressive legislation and police have done a good job of enforcement but really this is about your friends, family and colleagues, so set an example,” said B.C. Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Shirley Bond.

Oct. 3, 2011 You don’t have to be a distracted driver As I contemplated turning left or right during heavy traffic, I reached for my iPhone and its wonderful GoogleMaps app. And its wonderful GPS app. Then I remembered the new distracted driving law. So I reached for the hand-scrawled note on the seat beside me. It had the name of the business, but no directions. Hmmm. Would it be wrong to plug name into my phone? Yes, of course. I should have done that before leaving home (but … I hadn’t).

Sept. 30, 2011 Distracted driver’s ed: Students schooled on dangers of being inattentive behind the wheel Three weeks ago, Cheryl Derry’s life was changed forever, when her husband of 23 years was killed in a car accident on his way to work. Mark Derry died in hospital Sept. 7, a day after being hit head-on by a truck driven by a 19-year-old man who police say was texting while driving on Dugald Road.

Sept. 29, 2011 Police: Distracted Driver Caused Head-On Crash Goffstown police said a distracted driver may have been the cause of a car crash that seriously injured two people Wednesday. Witnesses said they saw one of the drivers looking down at a cellphone just before the head-on crash at about 7 p.m. Wednesday. Investigators said the driver’s blue sedan crossed over the center line on Daniel Plummer Road before hitting an SUV.

Sept. 29, 2011 Distracted drivers are common, students find A survey by students in three Canadian cities yesterday found that many people are distracted by their driving. The students, participating in Allstate Insurance’s Action Against Distraction initiative, counted drivers in Moncton, Montreal and Toronto. After one hour at one intersection in each of the cities, the students counted 802 drivers who were distracted while they drove.

Sept. 24, 2011 Drivers should expect the unexpected on the road While talking about the subject of distracted driving the other day, it occurred to me that part of the problem, especially among younger drivers, is the lack of visual awareness in general and more specifically poor search habits. Distracted driving is a major problem. Any distraction results in delayed recognition and the need to do something, to steer, brake or accelerate. Many times the result is a crash.

Sept. 23, 2011 Don’t Drive While Using Your Gadgets—Use Our Gadgets Instead! …automakers are positioning themselves as leaders in the fight against distracted driving, a problem federal authorities estimate caused 5,474 deaths in 2009—including 995 from using cell phones. Yet even as they urge drivers to focus on the road, these same companies are packing their new models with cutting-edge infotainment systems that encourage drivers to multitask.

Sept. 20, 2011 Cause of North Berwick train-truck crash: Police cite distraction from possible use of mobile device North Berwick police are citing “inattention/distraction by the possible use of a mobile communication device” as the cause of a collision between a tractor-trailer truck and an Amtrak Downeaster train that killed a Farmington man in July.

Sept. 20, 2011 Maine tourist angry over distracted driving fine David Cowley says his wife was driving their vehicle to an automotive dealership in Woodstock last week for repairs, when she was pulled over and fined $172.50 cents for talking on her cell phone. Cowley says she had no idea she was breaking the law. New Brunswick’s ban on cellphones and other hand-held devices, while driving, came into force on June 6. It has been advertised on radio and TV in Maine.

Sept. 15, 2011 AMA and CAA Launch Website to Educate on the Dangers of Distracted Driving “There are no accidents when it comes to distracted driving, there are only collisions. A distraction can last only a moment, but the consequences last a lifetime,” said Kurt Paterson, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, AMA Member Services. “With so many distractions behind the wheel, it’s easy to become complacent. It’s important that we all stay focused on the road. “With distracted driving becoming more of an issue across Canada, CAA feels this website is important on a national level. It is an information source for driving schools, and all of us as motorists,” said Jeff Walker, CAA Vice President of Public Affairs and Chief Strategy Officer.

Sept. 15, 2011 Distracted-driving charge laid in connection with fatal crash A 22-year-old man has been charged with distracted driving in connection with a two-vehicle crash that killed an elderly man in northwestern Alberta earlier this week. A 74-year-old Dawson Creek man died when his eastbound vehicle was struck by a westbound van on Highway 43, near Range Road 130. “He [the 22-year old] was changing some music and eating,” said Const. Ellen Archibald.

Sept. 13, 2011 Distracted driving education over enforcement, for now Two weeks after the implementation of Alberta’s new distracted driving legislation, police in Boyle are favouring education over enforcement for the time being.

Aug. 30, 2011 Texting and driving worse than drinking and driving A survey for ICBC shows three-quarters of us think people who text while behind the wheel are just as dangerous as drunk drivers.  The numbers aren’t much better for those who talk on their phones while driving either. Jill Blacklock with the crown corporation says almost two-thirds of us believe merely talking on a handheld phone while driving is very risky behaviour.

Aug. 25, 2011 Distracted driving a factor in half of fatal crashes Distracted driving is now the number one factor in driving deaths in Metro Vancouver, police say. Inattentive driving is now a factor in 47 per cent of fatal crashes, overtaking speed (36 per cent) and drinking (21 per cent) as the biggest danger behind the wheel. “I think people really think they can multitask while driving,” said RCMP Supt. Norm Gaumont.

Aug. 16, 2011 Brits Bust Motorist Using Two Cell Phones While Driving The BBC is reporting a stunning case of distracted driving. A British court banned a 34-year-old driver from driving for one year after he was stopped by police for using two mobile phones while driving. Police report the unemployed driver, David Secker, was talking on one phone and texting on the other. Mr. Secker was also convicted of driving without insurance.

Aug. 11, 2011 Ont. privacy commissioner disputes bus union Ontario’s privacy commissioner is calling out the Gatineau, Que., bus drivers union for using privacy as a defence for a distracted driver caught on video. Ann Cavoukian told CBC News the driver, who became a YouTube sensation when he filled out paperwork on his steering wheel while operating an STO bus, had no privacy rights. She said only individuals have privacy rights that need to be protected.

Aug. 10, 2011 National study on distracted drivers The Transportation Studies Center at USF is part of a major national study of what they call “Distracted Driving” in hopes of making our roadways safer.

Aug. 9, 2011 Texting Driver Bulldozes Through Yards, Car, House Police said a man who was texting as he drove in Hoquiam crashed into a parked car, went across two yards and slammed into a house. Officers said a 23-year old Montesano man admitted he was texting as he was driving his 1995 Toyota 4-Runner, drifted to the right and struck the back of a parked 2007 Toyota Yaris.

Aug. 5, 2011 Distracted-driving numbers don’t tell the whole story When it comes to how many Americans are killed or injured each year because of distracted driving, experts agree: The numbers don’t tell the full story. “It’s really difficult to collect good distracted-driving data,” said Barbara Harsha, executive director of the Governors Highway Safety Association. “The truth is, we’re only seeing a piece of the picture.” Officials with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration acknowledge that driver distraction is underreported.

Aug. 5, 2011 Distracted driving is a growing safety concern At any moment of the day, 11 percent of American motorists are talking on a cellphone, federal regulators say. But while law enforcers, policymakers and regulators struggle to deal with that threat in a comprehensive and effective way – there’s still no uniform way to even report that distraction was involved in an accident – the distractions keep coming. The safety problem has spread well beyond the risks of talking on the phone or texting while driving. Among the growing list of new distractions: on-demand horoscopes, sports scores, stock prices, weather updates, news and movie listings. You can even customize your cluster display and download applications in some vehicles while driving.

Aug. 4, 2011 Texting While Driving: Targeted for Extinction A Deadly Distraction Is a Fixture in Young Drivers’ Lives. Of all the distractions ensnaring drivers, texting is the one that’s raising the greatest ire among safety researchers, industry critics, auto companies and federal and state regulators. Texting is taking lives, and that’s provoking national outrage and promulgating new laws and safety campaigns.

Aug. 3, 2011 Editorial: A message to Massachusetts drivers — texting is unlawful Drivers need to smarten up and stop using cell phones behind the wheel. A tougher law would send a stronger message that distracted driving can kill.

Aug. 3, 2011 Dog owners flunk AAA’s driving survey; Too many are distracted by pets Fido may love to ride in the car, but too many owners are putting themselves and their beloved pets in danger by engaging in distracting behaviours on the road, according to one recent survey of dog owners. Nearly six in 10 drivers – 56 per cent of respondents – said they travel by car with their dog at least once a month. Respondents admitted to petting their dogs (52 per cent), taking their hands off the wheel to hold the dog while braking (23 per cent), and using their hands to prevent the dog from getting into the front seat (19 per cent), according to the survey.

Aug. 1, 2011 Whitefish hopes to use education, more than enforcement on cell phone ban Whitefish Police are aiming to use education as the first effort to convince drivers to not use their cell phones on city streets. And Whitefish Police aren’t just focusing on adults. Dial says they plan on discussing the hazards of cell phones and distracted driving during their visits to classes during the upcoming school year.

July 28, 2011 Student’s science project is a multitasker’s reality check We all know distracted driving is a problem – but what actually goes on in the brain when you’re “multitasking’’ behind the wheel? In a six-minute online test designed by the Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School senior, users guide an object along a track – correcting for speed and lane position just as they would while driving – as they are interrupted by classical music and a barrage of questions dealing with math, memory, visualization, and categorization (i.e., What is the sum of 5, 6, 1, and 2? What is the first place you remember living? What do a cucumber, a leaf, and an emerald have in common?). By jumping between different subjects, the aim was to trigger different parts of the brain, Sprenkle explained.

July 26, 2011 Multitasking while driving: Can technology make a car uncrashable? Think that texting while driving is a distraction? An enhanced navigation system in the new Audi A6, drawing on technology from Google (GOOG), offers search and display functions that could take driver distraction to a whole new level. But Audi is also including safety features that make the car less likely to crash.

July 25, 2011 Ticket writing blitz, publicity campaign slashes distracted driving Stepped-up police enforcement of distracted-driving laws coupled with publicity campaigns can dramatically reduce cases of drivers who aren’t paying attention behind the wheel, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said today.

July 21, 2011 Study: 15 percent admit to texting at the wheel despite acknowledging its danger A new study is revealing that while a majority of motorists acknowledge that cell phone use is a driving hazard, a significant percentage use their mobile devices behind the wheel anyway. The alarming results were revealed in GMAC Insurance’s National Drivers Test, wherein 80 percent said it’s never OK to text and drive, yet 15 percent admit to the practice. But an even larger percentage – 50 percent – say they use their cell phone to talk behind the wheel.

July 20, 2011 AAA Study: 20% of Drivers With Dogs Admit to Driving While Distracted  A recent survey conducted by AAA and Kurgo, a leading manufacturer of pet travel products, asked dog owners how often they drive with their dog and examined their habits behind the wheel. The survey results indicated that drivers not only love to bring Fido in the car, but often engage in risky behaviors when man’s best friend is along for the ride.

July 19, 2011 Drivers more rude than ever: survey Most Canadians believe it’s time to put the brakes on bad driving habits, according to a national poll that found drivers nationwide have become “more annoying” on the road. “The new law prohibiting texting while driving hasn’t changed anything,” the 26-yearold said. “All it did was make it worse because now people try to hide their phones and their eye level is at their lap.”

July 19, 2011 Are you seeing more road rage and rudeness on the road? Canadian drivers could use a refresher course in etiquette, the Canadian Press reports. A new poll released by the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) Monday suggests there’s been a sharp decline in manners on the road in the past five years, with three out of four survey respondents admitting they are observing more annoying behaviour on the road. Among the irritations that ranked high on the poll, being cut off in traffic and road rage placed highest, getting a mention from 86 per cent of those surveyed. Other bad behaviours that were cited include talking on the phone while driving, tailgating, throwing trash out the window and not using signals.

July 18, 2011 Distracted driving can be a fatal mistake Your teenage driver can get a first hand look at how cell phones, music and their friends can throw them off course. They are all distractions that can even cost them their lives. Traffic crashes are the number one killer of teenagers right now.

July 17, 2011 A local girl tries to reach people through a PSA Emily Gildersleeve has been a girl scout for 13 years and is now trying to earn her gold award; she recently put together a public service announcement about the dangers of texting and driving. “I feel like texting and driving is a hot topic in our community right now in that the dangers need to be shared with everybody, so there are aware that its a dangerous thing to do,” said Gildersleeve.

July 7, 2011 Distracted Driving: What Research Shows and What States Can Do The report outlines the some distracted driving certainties, concludes that states should absolutely undertake four specific countermeasures, and also lists countermeasures that states should consider.

July 5, 2011 Connersville man texting while driving plows through Richmond business Texting Causes Driver to Crash Through Building: Lucas Harrison, 21, of Connersville told police he was texting and driving while heading south on Chester Boulevard. Harrison’s car entered Grandview Medical Equipment, went through the businesses retail area and out the south side of the building.

June 23, 2011 GREAT HANG UP: A mother’s pain Bonnye Spray lost her daughter in a car accident four years ago. Nineteen-year-old Amanda Clark had been texting and driving and it wasn’t the first accident she had involving distracted driving. Spray says she and her daughter spoke on the phone April 1, 2007, and Clark said she’d be back soon. That was the last conversation they had before Spray received word her daughter had been in a crash.

June 23, 2011 Young driver races for a good cause Over Father’s Day weekend, the full Mazda Road to Indy Ladder Series roared into Wisconsin for the famed Milwaukee Mile. The contestant I was rooting for was Zach “Ziggy” Veach, a terrific young advocate in our fight against distracted driving.   I’m sure that Zach raced on Sunday hoping to win one for his dad, but he also had an even more important mission: to raise awareness and support for the family of 6-year-old Xzavier Davis-Bilbo. Xzavier was paralyzed last October 2010 when a texting driver struck him while he and his sister crossed the street. He is now wheelchair-bound and remains on a ventilator.

June 22, 2011 Update: Alberta family involved in fatal Granville Street crash identified Vancouver police confirmed the identities Wednesday of four family members involved in a fatal crash into a bus on Granville Street earlier this week. Daniel Tschetter, 32; his mother, 62-year-old Susie Tschetter; and Daniel’s wife, 30-year-old Debbie Tschetter all died in the collision. Daniel’s father, Daniel Tschetter, Sr., remains in hospital in critical condition.

June 21, 2011 Three people dead after car slams into bus on Granville Street Three people are dead and one is clinging to life after a car crashed into a transit bus in Vancouver Monday night. The four people were riding in a red Toyota Corolla heading south on Granville Street at around 6 p.m. when the car slammed into the back of a #10 bus that had slowed down to pick up passengers near Nanton Avenue.

June 17, 2011 Florida mom shares the devastating results of driving distracted We’ve all seen it. People driving while they’re eating, talking on the phone or texting.  A Florida mother lost her daughter because of it, and wants to put an end to those distractions. Murphy says, “What if she was still here. I think about it everyday. She was going to be a mother. She was pregnant at the time of her accident that they hit her.”

June 15, 2011 Cars 2 distracted driving ad demonstrates the value of strong safety partners Today, I am thrilled to show you our latest Public Service Announcement to help end distracted driving. DOT has partnered with Disney and Pixar to create an ad using popular characters from their upcoming release, Cars 2.  Called “Only the bad guys drive distracted,” this terrific 30-second spot advises viewers, “No calling, no texting, nothing that can take away your focus.”

June 14, 2011 Teen found guilty in crash that killed toddler A jury found a 16-year-old girl guilty of vehicular homicide Tuesday in a crash that left a 2-year-old girl dead and her mother injured. The toddler sustained a crushing skull injury and was pronounced dead at the scene. Detectives said the teen driver, who was with two friends at the time, was distracted as she’d just asked her passenger to find something in her backpack. “There was inattention for a great period of time — the court indicated up to 10 seconds,” prosecuting attorney Dave McEachran said Tuesday. “And you just cannot do that and operate a vehicle and do it within the law.”

June 14, 2011 Erin Wood attends sentencing of drivers responsible in crash that killed husband Before the sentence was handed down in Island County Superior Court Friday, the North Vancouver woman had struggled and sobbed while reading the judge her victim-impact statement. She was seven-months’ pregnant last Sept. 3 when the two Oak Harbour, Wash. women, who were sharing the steering duties of an SUV on a North Whidbey highway while one took off a sweater, lost control of the car and slammed into the Wood’s station wagon. Brian Wood was killed instantly along with two passengers in the backseat of the SUV. Wood had slammed on the brakes and swerved right to avoid a head-on crash that likely saved his wife and unborn daughter.

June 5, 2011 One Dead in Langley Crash One person died in a motor vehicle crash westbound on Hwy 1 just west of the 248th St overpass around 10PM Saturday night in Langley. Paramedics and police arrived to find a car had lost control and flipped over onto its roof landing in the grassy median. It appears it was a single car accident. A man was trapped under the car. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

June 5, 2011 19 year old dead after car crash in Harrison Hot Springs A 19 year old man is dead after the Honda he was riding in, crashed into a parked vehicle and then into a telephone pole in Harrison Hot springs Saturday evening. The second passenger, a woman in her 20′s, is in critical condition. The driver is a man in his 20′s from the Lower Mainland, and suffered serious injuries. He is now under investigation for impaired driving causing death.

June 4, 2011 Alberta driver killed in collision with Greyhound bus in B.C A 34-year-old woman from Cowley, Alberta, is dead after her car collided with a Greyhound bus near Fernie, B.C., Saturday, confirmed RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Annie Linteau. Linteau said the vehicle crossed a double centre line on Highway 3 and struck the bus around 4 a.m. local time. Linteau said weather conditions at the time of the accident were clear and dry, but she noted it was dark and there was no artificial lighting in the area.

June 2, 2011 5-Year-Old Girl Hit by School Bus in Surrey, B.C. The little girl was walking in a crosswalk at 148 Street and 105 Avenue when she was hit by a northbound private school bus around 4:45 p.m. She was with another child and a caregiver at the time. RCMP are investigating. Police say speed does not appear to be a factor in the crash, but rainy weather conditions and inattention by the bus driver could have contributed.

June 1, 2011 U.S. Presses to Rein In Web Gadgets in New Cars As consumers clamor for more tools to help them stay connected to online media on the road, auto makers are coming under fresh pressure to minimize distracting gadgetry in new cars. “There’s absolutely no reason for any person to download their Facebook into the car,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in an interview. “It’s not necessary.”

May 31, 2011 Pembroke teen dies while texting behind the wheel Texting and driving can have serious consequences – and that’s what a Pembroke family is learning after their son was killed in a head-on collision near Mattawa on Highway 17 over the weekend. A final text message was sent from his phone just seconds before the crash. Eighteen-year-old Damon Souliere was on his way home to Pembroke in the Upper Ottawa Valley when his red Sunfire hit a tractor trailer head-on. He had just sent a text message to a friend he saw the night before. The text said he had a good night. Other friends say they were also texting with him around the same time. “I love my son so much. But he made a mistake. He made a mistake. Made a mistake texting,” said Sid Souliere, Damon’s father.

May 30, 2011 Crackdown on distracted driving in Alberta delayed The Alberta government is delaying its crackdown on drivers who talk, text and eat behind the wheel until the fall. Officials are Alberta Transportation say more time is needed to amend the traffic act and the fine structure.

May 24, 2011 Mother shares story to warn teens of dangers of distracted driving The U.S. Department of Transportation defines distracted driving as any non-driving activity that a person engages in that has the potential to distract him or her from the primary task of driving and increase the risk of crashing. In Shawna’s one-vehicle accident, she was drinking coffee and texting. “I can say with absolute certainty that Shawna was texting at the very moment she crashed,” Cyr [Shawna's mother] said. “It was a clear case of distracted driving.” Cyr began speaking out against distracted driving in 2007 when she was invited by Spencerport High School to talk to their seniors.

May 17, 2011 Canada Road Safety Week – Insurers offer tips for drivers IBC – During Road Safety Week (May 16 to 23), Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) reminds Canadians that distracted driving is about more than using hand-held devices. “Distractions come in many forms and although putting down the cellphone when driving is a good first step, drivers are urged to limit all distractions. Eating behind the wheel, fiddling with the radio and reaching for a fallen object are just a few examples of distractions that are dangerous and avoidable,” said Robert Tremblay, Director, Research, IBC.

May 17, 2011 Manslaughter Charge For Allegedly Texting Teen Driver A Rohnert Park teen, who killed a 2-year-old girl and injured her mother in a Rohnert Park crosswalk while allegedly sending a text message on her phone, was charged with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter Monday. Kaitlyn Dunaway, 18, allegedly caused the death of Calli Murray by texting while driving, driving at an unsafe speed for the conditions and failing to yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch said.

May 17, 2011 Saving Lives During Canada Road Safety Week BC RCMP – May 16 – 23, 2011 will mark Canada Road Safety Week, a national campaign to make Canada’s roads the safest in the world. This week has been strategically chosen, as it is the first “summer” long weekend. More people are traveling and traffic collisions are more frequent. Police vehicles will be stationed at key locations to remind people that safe driving habits save lives and reduce injuries on our roadways.

May 16, 2011 This is National Road Safety Week Whether you are a driver, a motorcyclist, a pedestrian, a scooter rider, or a cyclist, distractions on the road is an issue facing all Canadians. This is National Road Safety Week, kicking off the 2011 safe summer driving season. Vulnerable road users (pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, etc.) make up approximately 25 per cent of road users killed or seriously injured each year in traffic crashes. In 2008, 559 vulnerable road users were killed and 3,275 were seriously injured. If you are distracted by a ringing phone or programming your GPS, it becomes harder to react and avoid potential collisions with vulnerable road users.

May 12, 2011 Lamenting car crash deaths, UN chief urges greater attention to road safety Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today lamented the tragedy of needless deaths and injuries from road accidents and exhorted the world to intensify efforts to minimize the crashes by coming up with innovative plans to reduce the risks associated with them. “With the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety, we have a roadmap. Our goal is to save 5 million lives between now and the year 2020,” Mr. Ban said at a joint event in New York with the city’s mayor Michael Bloomberg to promote road safety.

May 11, 2011 UN Decade of Action launched to save 5 million lives An unprecedented international effort to reduce the appalling toll of global road death and injury has begun with the launch of the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety. The global effort to save five million lives and prevent 50 million serious injuries has been marked with major launch events in countries around the world. The UN is launching the Decade in the face of a worldwide epidemic of road deaths. Road crashes are now the number one killer of young people over the age of 10 around the world.

May 6, 2011 Police cracking down on bad driving behaviour this month Nearly 76,000 people hurt in crashes in BC every year. Almost two-thirds of accidents in BC where people get hurt or killed are because of bad behaviour behind the wheel. The province, police, and ICBC are together launching a new campaign. The things drivers see and the things drivers do are the focus of stepped-up enforcement this month. Just about every driver can describe a recent close call. “I just saw in my rear view mirror, the girl had her head down,” describes another driver. “I put on my horn, but the girl behind me, she was texting in her car. I see it all the time.”

May 5, 2011 New curb sought for teens who drive, text Cell phones sold in Chicago after Jan. 1 would have to be equipped with a special feature that allows parents to block kids from texting while driving, under a crackdown proposed Wednesday by the City Council’s most powerful alderman. “This law would put parents in the driver’s seat when it comes to stopping teens from texting while driving,” Burke said in a written statement.“By giving parents the option of temporarily turning off their kids’ texting ability, we could potentially save many lives and many people from being injured on our roadways.”

May 4, 2011 Drivers warned about dangerous habits As the countdown to Alberta’s distracted driving legislation begins, efforts have been ramped up to alert the driving public about the dangerous habits many take for granted. Alberta legislators are hoping to make the province’s roads safer this summer with the enactment of Bill 16. The new law also covers entering information into GPS units, reading printed material in the vehicle and personal grooming — pretty much anything that would require you to take your hands off the wheel while driving.

May 1, 2011 Dozens of TTC drivers punished for texting, eating on job The Toronto Transit Commission launched more than 70 investigations in a winter crackdown on distracted driving that saw operators punished for using cellphones, listening to iPods and reading newspapers behind the wheel. Facing a surge in complaints from exasperated customers, the commission suspended 27 drivers from their jobs in February and the first week of March, TTC documents show.

Apr. 28, 2011 Students learn reality of distracted driving High school students across the Central Okanagan are getting a crash course in the hazards of texting while driving. School District 23 teamed up with DriveWise B.C. this week to help educate students about the dangers of distracted driving. Well says that texting and driving has become an addiction for even the most experienced drivers.

Apr. 26, 2011 Distracted Driving Awareness Month winds down  with signing of 31st state texting ban in North Dakota There’s terrific news today out of North Dakota, where Governor Jack Dalrymple has just signed a law banning texting behind the wheel. Throughout April, schools, communities, states, and grassroots safety advocates across the country have really outdone themselves educating Americans about the dangers of texting or talking on a cell phone while driving. From stepped-up state enforcement in California, Connecticut and New York, to school events in Rockville, Maryland, people have shared the safety message that no text or call is worth risking your life and the lives of others.

Apr. 26, 2011 Distracted drivers, bike riders face higher fines Motorists who talk and text on their hand-held phones while driving could face fees up to $500 under a bill approved by the state Senate on Monday. Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, who authored the bill, said he expects that stiffer penalties will further deter motorists from violating the hands-free law. Simitian cited California Highway Patrol statistics showing a 20 percent reduction in fatalities and collisions in the first year after his hands-free law took effect in July 2008. The texting-while-driving prohibition took effect in January 2009. He said the statistics show the law helped save at least 700 lives and avoid more than 75,000 collisions annually compared to previous years.

Apr. 25, 2011 Car crash victim warns against distracted driving Local jogger was in rehab for more than a year after a motorist plowed into her. Two years ago today Kay Marien was jogging in a bike lane along La Jolla’s Gilman Drive when a motorist ran a red light and hit her head on. “It was so fast,” recalls Marien, 44. “Suddenly I’m on the hood of her car and she was still going.” When Marien lunged off to one side, her left foot was run over and torqued her body with enough force to break her back.

Apr. 19, 2011 St. James native appearing on ’20/20′ to caution about distracted driving Sontiana Brandts doesn’t cry when she talks about the night, more than four years ago, when a singular moment of distraction nearly ended her life. “There’s only one part of my story that makes me cry,” she warned, speaking by phone from her Mankato apartment just weeks before she is to appear in a “20/20” news documentary about distracted driving. The episode will air on ABC at 9 p.m. Friday.

Apr. 19, 2011 Charges: Texting mom never saw motorcyclist before hitting him head-on Amanda Manzanares was allegedly texting when she struck the man, critically injuring him. Her two young children were in the car. An Eden Prairie motorist who was allegedly texting when she struck a motorcyclist head-on last fall, leaving him critically injured, now faces a litany of charges including felony criminal vehicular operation and child endangerment. Amanda Elizabeth Manzanares, 20, was charged in Hennepin County District Court this week following the Oct. 7 accident on Excelsior Boulevard in Minnetonka. The motorcyclist, identified in charges as BDL, broke multiple bones and six months later has had more than $300,000 in medical bills.

Apr. 19, 2011 Top Distracted Drivers Show Distracted Behavior 67% of the Time During Risky Driving Maneuvers, According to 2010 SmartDrive Distracted Driving Index Study Tracked More Than 34,000 Commercial Drivers and More Than 13.8 Million Video Events in 2010, comparing risky driving maneuvers and distracted driving behaviors. Underscoring the importance of April’s National Distracted Driving Awareness campaign, SmartDrive Systems, a leader in fleet safety and operational efficiency, today released the 2010 SmartDrive Distracted Driving Index, a revealing look at commercial fleet distracted driving rates during the past year. Among several significant findings, the 2010 SDDI report shows that the top 5% of drivers with the most driving distractions were distracted 67% of the time during which a risky driving maneuver was observed.  That’s nearly six times more often than the rest of the drivers.

Apr. 15, 2011 Distracted Driving, Lose Your License: Report The General Assembly’s judiciary committee passed a bill Thursday, increasing fines, and giving police new tools to crack down on distracted drivers, according to the Hartford Courant. The bill would keep the fine of a first offense at $100, but second and subsequent offenses could cost drivers as much as $500, the paper reported. The current system fines drivers $150 for a second offense, and $200 for any offense past that. Also included in the new measure is a provision that would allow police to seize the driver’s licenses of repeat offenders for 24 hours, the Courant reported.

Apr. 12, 2011 New study and public service ad contest boost DOT safety efforts during National Distracted Driving Awareness Month The Department of Transportation continues to alert America’s drivers to the dangers of texting and talking on a cell phone behind the wheel.  Whether it’s through our Faces of Distracted Driving series, pamphlets educating parents, or presentations in high schools, we are on a rampage against distracted driving. Good data is a critical part of that effort, and yesterday the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and State Farm announced the results of an important new study of teen drivers.  This study seeks to identify the most common errors teen drivers make leading to a serious crash. Thankfully, we are not in this fight alone. Good data is a critical part of that effort, and yesterday the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and State Farm announced the results of an important new study of teen drivers.  This study seeks to identify the most common errors teen drivers make leading to a serious crash.

Apr. 11, 2011 Keeping Eyes on Distracted Driving’s Toll While driving a car, have you ever: Reprogrammed your GPS device? Retrieved something you or a child dropped? Searched for a particular CD? Put on makeup or shaved? Struggled to open a package of nuts or chips? Perhaps you never have texted or talked on a cellphone while operating a motor vehicle. But if you engaged in any of the above activities, you are just as guilty of distracted driving as if you had. It’s easy to become complacent. Maybe you’re a good driver, and you’ve gotten away with such actions for years. Maybe you managed to avert a near-accident when your attention returned to the road in the nick of time. But one of these days, your luck may run out and you, or someone you hit, could be maimed for life or dead.

Apr. 4, 2011 5 Most Dangerous Distracted Driving Technologies When people talk about technology related to distracted driving, they usually mean gadgets that make the roads safer by making distracted driving more difficult. But thanks to the tech “arms race” among car manufacturers, these companies have a economic interest in providing high-tech solutions to distracted driving laws, even if they don’t make you safer.

Apr. 1, 2011 Dog sends car across parking lot Surrey emergency personnel had to attend to a man who was hit by a car in the Surrey City Hall parking lot Friday morning. A large dog in the car apparently bumped the gear shift of the car, sending the vehicle across the parking lot.

Apr. 1, 2011 Tragic accident inspires East Texas students After an East Texas teenager was killed in a wreck while she was texting and driving this weekend, her mother sent a written plea to her fellow students. Lillian Propes, 16, died Sunday when her truck went off the road near Tatum and crashed into a tree. The next day, Lillian’s mother warned her fellow students about the dangers of texting and driving. And her message is spreading across East Texas.

 

Mar. 31, 2011 Canada Post employee caught eating and driving Add distracted driving to the growing list of no-nos committed recently by Canada Post drivers. A Toronto Sun reader snapped a photo of a female Canada Post employee eating while driving a mail van north on the Don Valley Parkway just north of the Lawrence Ave. underpass. In the photo, shot late in the afternoon of March 21, the driver has her right hand on the wheel, and with her left hand is holding a container of salad — complete with fork.

Mar. 31, 2011 Distracted driving: ‘Deadly epidemic’ or storm in a teacup? When a dump truck carrying 24 tons of rock salt crashed on I-81 in Pennsylvania recently, police linked the collision, which killed one motorist and injured several others, to distracted driving. The incident is not unique. A quick search of news headlines for car accidents shows federal regulators linked texting, cellphone use and other forms of distracted driving to 5,500 deaths in 2009 — the latest year for which data is available — and to at least a half million injuries. “Distracted driving has become a deadly epidemic on America’s roads,” insists U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, the country’s leading — and perhaps most outspoken — proponent of rules that would bar drivers from texting, making cell phone calls or using other high-tech devices while behind the wheel of a vehicle.

Mar. 29, 2011 Legislation to punish drivers who text while driving killed in House Idaho lawmakers have dumped legislation to punish Idaho drivers who become distracted using hand-held electronic devices.

Mar. 24, 2011 Fresno State talk focuses on distracted driving “We are becoming a society that is obsessed with our cell phones,” said Tamyra Pierce, chair of the Mass Communication and Journalism Department. “Until people are directly impacted or something happens to wake them up, that’s the only way that they’re going to stop.” That wake-up call too often comes in a fatal car accident. New York Times reporter Matt Richtel, who won a Pulitzer Prize last year for his series on distracted driving, will talk about the fatal results of using cell phones while driving.

Mar. 22, 2011 Disabilities illustrate dangers of distracted driving In unsparing multimedia imagery that featured her battered body in intensive care, Venice High School alumna Katie Mathews employed her own horror story Tuesday to warn students that cellphones and driving do not mix.

Mar. 15, 2011 Why you pay attention to the road, not the accident A photojournalist in St. Louis captured an inattentive driver speeding towards a police car blocking the scene of another accident. The police car was crushed, but the officers were thankfully out directing traffic.

Mar. 15, 2011 Distracted driving stats ring in for B.C. Just because the campaign has come to a close doesn’t mean that officers will not target those still using cellphones while driving, Inspector Eric Brewer, the officer in charge of the North District Traffic Services said. “Clearly attention was brought back to Distracted Driving and the inherent dangers involved in this activity while operating a vehicle,” Brewer said in a press release.

Mar. 14, 2011 ‘Hang up and drive’ Dangers of distracted driving targeted Fewer than one in three drivers under age 30 considers it dangerous to use a handheld phone while driving, according to a poll released last week by the U.S. Transportation Department. Yet in 2009, nearly 5,500 people were killed in U.S. traffic accidents blamed on distracted driving. That statistic doesn’t include the thousands of devastating injuries that occurred when a driver turned his or her attention from the road to their phone. In a world dominated by cell phones and social media, officials are finding it difficult to get the message across that texting, talking and e-mailing while driving can be deadly.

Mar. 9, 2011 Burnaby RCMP: Charges could be laid in deadly crash Charges could be laid against a 20-year-old man from West Vancouver, who was behind the wheel in a fatal crash on Burnaby Mountain last night. Their car went off an embankment at Gaglardi Way and University Drive at around 7 o’clock. Police say alcohol, speed, distracted driving, and road conditions will all be looked at as possible contributing factors in the crash.

Mar. 8, 2011 The Dangers of Being ‘Text’ually Active A study led by Professor Dave Strayer of University of Utah concluded that when a teenager is driving using a cell phone—not even texting, just using a cell phone—he or she has the reaction time of a seventy year old. This is even more shocking when you consider that physically, teens are in the prime of their lives.  Simply using a cell phone when driving takes a teen from the best reaction times he or she will ever enjoy to the reaction times of a person that for the majority of human history was literally impossibly old.  It gets even more dramatic: according to a recent study, when you text you become eight times more likely to get into an accident.  This is similar to the effect of drinking four beers.

Mar. 8, 2011 Poll: 30% of Younger Drivers Text At the Wheel Car crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teenagers, who are involved in three times as many fatal crashes as all other drivers. The Transportation Department reports that about 5,500 people were killed and another half million were injured in 2009 during accidents related to distracted driving. New poll numbers from Consumer Reports show that nearly one-third of drivers under 30 reported that they used their phone to send text messages while behind the wheel, and 63 percent of respondents said they had used their phone while driving. “Distracted driving has become a deadly epidemic on America’s roads,” Secretary LaHood said in a statement.

Mar. 8, 2011 SoCal man sentenced in distracted driving case A Southern California man whose distracted driving caused a crash that killed a 4-month-baby has been sentenced to three years of probation.

Mar. 7, 2011 Families share the tragic impact of distracted driving, learn what you can do “She never looked up,” said Tracy O’Carroll recounting the last seconds of her 18-year-old daughter’s life, tragically ended when she drifted across the centerline of a rural North Carolina road and into the back axle of a loaded log truck in early January. Sarah Edwards died instantly. Mere moments before, Sarah was behind the wheel of her 1988 Honda Accord reading a text message. Less than a minute later the first 911 call was placed. Texting was cited as a contributing factor in her death.

Mar. 5, 2011 Are smartphones driving us to distraction? Some argue that there is no safe way to talk, text and drive, while others see a market opportunity The high-profile death of Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Frank Ryan, whose Jeep went over a cliff right after he tweeted from his cellphone, was only one in a litany of accidents caused by distracted drivers. More recently Stephanie Baker, a student at Saginaw Valley State University in the U.S., drove into a moving train while she was talking to her dad on a cellphone. Her dad heard the crash, which she survived with injuries that weren’t life-threatening. In British Columbia, distracted drivers contributed to 104 collision deaths last year and more than 5,000 injuries, according to the RCMP’s “E” Division Traffic Services.

Mar. 2, 2011 Thousands of distracted drivers caught by B.C. police Mounties across British Columbia caught more than 3,000 drivers using handheld electronic devices during February’s distracted driving campaign. The law banning drivers from using devices while operating a motor vehicle has been in operation for a year now. This was the first awareness campaign set up to monitor drivers in British Columbia, and will probably be repeated every February, according to Cpl. Jamie Chung, spokesman for “E” Division Traffic Services. “But that doesn’t mean we won’t be enforcing the law if we’re not having the campaign,” he said. Supt. Mike Diack said that last year, distracted driving contributed to 104 collision fatalities and over 5,000 injuries in British Columbia.

Mar. 1, 2011 Idaho Bill Says Driving & Texting OK, As Long As Driver Isn’t Distracted An Idaho House representative has proposed a bill to allow people to text and drive — as long as they’re not distracted.

Mar. 1, 2011 Distracted driving campaign begins today City police are clamping down on distracted drivers. March has been designated Distracted Driving Month. An enforcement blitz began Tuesday and traffic services will be concentrating their efforts in the city’s west end. The blitz is an effort to get the message out that drivers who break the law by using wireless devices while driving are risking their own safety and those of others on the roads and will be charged under the Highway Traffic Act.

Feb. 28, 2011 KEEP YOUR HANDS AT “TEN & TWO” Remember that old song: “Keep your mind on your driving, keep your hands on the wheel, keep your your goofy eyes on the road ahead….We’re having fun, sittin’ in the back seat, kissin’ and a-huggin’ with Fred.” (We think that’s the how the lyrics go). Sound advice, though, because Durham Police will be out and about looking for distracted drivers with their “Ten & Two” campaign starting today (Feb. 28th) until Sunday, March 6, 2011. With all the press surrounding the Distracted Driving Legislation, this should be a no-brainer. Yet, Toronto Police last week published the numbers of their distracted driving campaign “Last Call: Whatever you say can wait”, and the results indicate that drivers are not distracted by the law at all.

Feb. 26, 2011 Have You Driven a Smartphone Lately? I’m barreling along a rural Michigan highway at 75 miles per hour in a gray Ford Taurus X when I glance down to check a number on a screen. It can’t be more than two seconds, but when I look back up, I’m inches from plowing into a huge green truck. Panicked, I slam on the brakes. Even though I’m in Virttex, the Ford simulator that uses virtual reality to give you the eerily real sensation that you’re flying down the highway past cars and barns, I still feel shaken. I made the mistake of taking my eyes off the road for more than 1.5 seconds, which is the danger zone, according to technology experts at Ford headquarters.

Feb. 23, 2011 Student survives after driving into train A Saginaw Valley State University student is recovering after the car she was driving crashed into a moving train. The accident happened Tuesday morning in Saginaw Township on Mackinaw Road near McCarty, and serves as the latest example of the dangers of driving while talking on a cell phone. Police say 22-year-old Stephanie Baker from Hillsdale County was driving to SVSU and talking to her father on a cell phone at the same time. “Her dad hears the collision,” Saginaw Township Police Sgt. Jack Doyle said.

Feb. 23, 2011 Just 25% of people on cell phones noticed the spectacle How much do you miss right in front of you when you’re using your cell phone? It turns out you might even miss a spectacle. In a groundbreaking study out of Western Washington University, researchers wanted to see how distracting a cell phone can be with the help of a clown on a unicycle. “It’s not a question of what your hands are doing. It’s a question of what your head is doing. And so when your head is engaged in that phone conversation, you become blind to some of the things happening around you,” said Dr. Ira Hyman of Western Washington University. Translation: When people are on cell phones, hands-free or not, they can’t focus fully on driving or even walking.

Feb. 23, 2011 Police see increase in distracted driving

Feb. 23, 2011 Toronto police charge 2,500 in distracted driving crackdown It’s been a little over a year since police began nabbing drivers talking on their phones while driving — but apparently motorists have not learned their lesson. Toronto police laid more than 2,500 charges last week during their seven-day campaign to end distracted driving — compared to the 1,500 laid in the 2010 campaign. This year’s seven-day blitz, dubbed “Last call: Whatever you have to say can wait,” was launched Valentine’s Day and wrapped up Sunday. Police said the highest increase — up 114 per cent — was for careless driving charges, with 122 tickets at $400 each handed out to those who were so distracted by their hand-held devices that their driving was deemed “careless” by officers.

Feb. 22, 2011 Distracted driving is dangerous MADD — Mothers Against Drunk Driving — began a diligent campaign years ago which effectively changed laws and attitudes toward individuals who drive vehicles while being under the influence of alcohol or other drugs. Their efforts also resulted in an increase in public awareness about the problem, and stimulated law enforcement. Should there be another MADD — Motorists Against Distracted Drivers? They could mount an equally diligent campaign against people driving vehicles while using cell phones to talk, text or play. It is unquestionable that, at any time in any day, the percentage of drivers who are “impaired” (or distracted) while using a cell phone in some fashion, far exceeds the number of drivers who are impaired while driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Feb. 18, 2011 Young Workers And Distracted Driving The enthusiasm that a young person brings to a job cannot be duplicated.  However, their eagerness to please their supervisor may limit their judgment in certain circumstances that could result in an injury or accident.  On-the-job driving is one of the tasks that older workers may handle best, until the new worker is ready.  The Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits workers under 18 years of age from working as a motor-vehicle driver or outside helper on any public road or highway except that 17-year-olds may drive automobiles and trucks on an incidental and occasional basis if certain criteria are met. Not wishing to be unfair, I have seen any number of older persons distracted while driving.

Feb. 18, 2011 Editorial: Distracted driving: We all need to do some-more to forestall dreaming driving Two trade accidents. One death. One busload of frightened kids. What do they have in common? Besides a fact a accidents happened within 24 hours of any other in Fruitport Township, a other common denominator was dreaming drivers. One motorist allegedly was regulating his dungeon phone when he swerved onto a shoulder and killed a male retrieving a gas can from a behind of his parked car. The other motorist allegedly was regulating his dungeon phone when he sideswiped a propagandize bus. Thankfully no one was hurt.

Feb. 18, 2011 Taser hopes to stun teens into not driving distracted Taser International, the outfit that makes the zappers that cops use on perps who plead “don’t taze me, bro,” is branching out. It has come out with a device that keeps teen drivers from using their cellphones in the car. No, it doesn’t involve powerful electric shocks, but maybe it should. Basically, it’s intended to be a $250 solution to the problem of teenage distracted driving.

Feb. 18, 2011 Inattentive driving a fatal flaw For a moment after the Volvo they were in screeched to a stop last Friday morning during a sudden backup on Interstate 81, friends David Vogen, of Shickshinny, and Todd Kocher gave each other a look as if they were lucky to be alive. Seconds later, an out-of-control dump truck hauling 24 tons of rock salt crashed onto their car. Vogen, 44, who was driving, was unconscious but had a pulse and was breathing, his friend said. Kocher was able to crawl out when someone opened the door from the outside. Vogen, who was en route to the Eastern Sports & Outdoor Show at the nearby the Farm Show Complex, died shortly thereafter.

Feb. 17, 2011 New York Drivers Face Tougher Penalties for Handheld Cell Use Drivers caught talking on handheld cellphones in New York State now face what are being described as the toughest penalties in the nation as part of a campaign against distracted driving. New York became the first state to prohibit drivers from using handheld cell phones in 2001, punishing violators with a $100 fine. But crashes tied to distracted driving have not declined, so lawmakers decided to get tougher.

Feb. 16, 2011 Texting is killing young drivers, symposium told Safety officials told a Portland symposium today that one of the greatest threats to the lives of young people is texting while driving. Ronald Medford, deputy administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, told a gathering of about 150 people at the Ocean Gateway Terminal that the most likely cause of death for people between 12 and 33 is traffic crashes. Distracted driving – often the result of cell phone use – contributed to 16 percent of fatal crashes for people under 20, he said. “It’s good kids. It’s great kids. It’s all kinds of kids making really bad decisions while driving,” Medford said.

Feb. 16, 2011 Don’t drive distracted Instead of a little red heart, some drivers received a pricey blue ticket. Members of the Burnaby RCMP were out Monday morning along Hastings Street enforcing the year-old distracted driving laws. Warnings or tickets were issued to drivers not in compliance during the three-hour blitz. “The effects of unsafe and distracted driving extend far beyond the road, involving many facets of our lives,” Burnaby RCMP Cpl. Brenda Gresiuk said in a press release. “The human suffering from road crashes is enormous. For every victim, there are family members, friends, colleagues, and communities who must cope with the physical and psychological consequences of the death, injury, or disability of a loved one.

Feb. 15, 2011 DROP IT AND DRIVE ANNOUNCES 1ST ANNUAL DISTRACTED DRIVING AWARENESS POSTER CONTEST

SURREY, BC – Ironically, within 3 months of starting an education program to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving, D.I.A.D. Founder, Karen Bowman came face-to-face with her own terrifying experience.

“My 8-year-old daughter was in a friend’s van that was rear-ended by a distracted driver on Hwy 15. The phone call from my friend’s daughter screaming ‘We’ve been hit!’ was the most terrifying moment of my life as I tried to find out how seriously injured my daughter was,” said Karen.

Earlier this month, the RCMP announced that February is Distracted Driving Awareness Month in BC. Inspired by their daughter’s experience and the posters she created after the accident, D.I.A.D. is announcing their 1st Annual Distracted Driving Awareness Poster Contest for elementary schools across British Columbia.

Although in-class presentations are geared towards teens and young adults, D.I.A.D. believes that the elementary school age group is in a unique position to share their feelings ‘unfiltered by social pressures’ about what they’re observing when travelling in the back seat.

D.I.A.D. delivers unique no-holds-barred multi-speaker educational sessions to teens and young adults throughout British Columbia about the dangers of distracted driving and talking/texting while driving. Talking, texting, eating, personal grooming, dressing, reading & allowing pets to travel on laps have all taken precedence over the important task of keeping hands on the wheel and eyes on the road.

“A “must” presentation for the educational system. Powerful and realistic scenarios that make the students believe in what could ultimately happen,” says Dolena Ward, Career Centre, LA Matheson Secondary.

Sponsors of the poster contest include Young Drivers of Canada and from Hillcrest Village: PriceSmart, Vera’s Burger Shack, First Choice Haircutters, and Hillcrest Dental Group in addition to the cash awards donated by D.I.A.D.

Feb. 15, 2011 RCMP send message with cellphone blitz Police were hoping to kiss distracted driving good-bye with a Valentine’s Day blitz on people using their hand-held cellphones while driving. In the pouring rain Monday, a man stood at the corner of 88 Avenue and King George Boulevard, waiting to cross. A red sedan passes, and the pedestrian relays the car colour and model to other police officers waiting up the street. That car, and several others, are pulled into the Surrey Arts Centre. The drivers have been spotted talking on a hand-held cellphone, which has been banned in this province.

Feb. 14, 2011 Distracted drivers get tough love from Surrey cops Surrey Mounties shared the love Monday with motorists who are infatuated with text messaging and yakking on their cell phones while driving. Instead of handing out Valentine’s cards, though, the police were presenting them with tickets to the tune of $167 during a traffic enforcement blitz at King George Boulevard and 88th Avenue around noon Monday. These motorists have been driving traffic cops to distraction.

Feb. 14, 2011 U.S. Drivers Admit to “Amorous Contact” Behind the Wheel in New Survey Talk about distracted driving. Nearly one-third of U.S. drivers admit to “smooching or engaging in other romantic contact” while they’re behind the wheel, according to a poll released in time for Valentine’s Day by InsuranceQuotes.com. “Twenty-nine percent of drivers surveyed acknowledge they’ve been amorous behind the wheel,” said a statement by InsuranceQuotes.com. “That number climbs to 39 percent for highly educated drivers (at least a bachelor’s degree) and high-income drivers (at least $75,000 in annual earnings),” it said.

Feb. 12, 2011 Coroner: Man Texting Before Deadly SC Crash A coroner says a South Carolina man who was killed after wrecking his SUV was drunk and texting at the time of the crash and was still holding his cell phone when his body was found.

Feb. 10, 2011 Instructor Changes Approach To Address Distracted Driving ‘Epidemic’ More than 10,000 new teenage drivers hit the road each year in Mecklenburg County. Chuck Lehning teaches most of them, using a car and textbook. “There really wasn’t anything in the old books that much,” Lehning said of distracted driving. “Especially (regarding) cell phones and texting.” During a drive with Lehning on Thursday, he said he’s had to change his approach for a new generation of driver.

Feb. 10, 2011 Distracted Driving Workers Compensation Claim Draws Major Public Attention A workers compensation claim filed by a state trooper for injuries he sustained while texting and speeding 126 miles per hour that resulting in a fatal accident with oncoming teenagers, a driver and a passenger, has drawn media attention.

Feb. 9, 2011 Recovering high school wrestler determined to share dangers of distracted driving An East Tennessee family wants to turn a horrible wreck in a positive direction with a survivor’s message. “I go to Knox Catholic High School. And I was going to be the captain of the wrestling team this year,” 16-year-old Joe Polakiewicz said by way of introduction. Instead of wrestling, Joe Polakiewicz is recovering from an October wreck that split his Volkswagen Bug in two and sent him to the hospital for almost two months.

Feb. 7, 2011 February is Distracted Driver Month, RCMP cracking down on bad driving habits For those drivers who feel they can multi-task while driving, the RCMP have designated February as Distracted Driver Month and will be increasing their efforts to reduce harm caused by those distracted drivers. Distracted driving behaviors can include eating, text messaging, cell phone use, applying make up, and  having your pet in your lap.  The result of a driver not paying attention while operating a motor vehicle could be life or death.

Feb. 6, 2011 Okotoks Mounties plan distracted driving blitz Though tough new legislation has yet to come into effect, drivers should never be off the hook when they’re distracted behind the wheel, say Mounties. Okotoks RCMP will be cracking down on distracted drivers throughout February, which should be good practice for when the province introduces what’s being called the most comprehensive legislation in Canada later this year. “It doesn’t have to be illegal to make it unsafe,” said Const. Tammy Tessier of distracted driving, which will be the focus of a month-long Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) in the town south of Calgary.

Feb. 2, 2011 Distracted drivers put selves, others at risk It is an alarming safety hazard that is becoming increasingly common on the streets of our city, state and nation. Chances are you have seen it first hand. The motorist who you believe may be drugged or drunk due to weaving and an erratic speed is instead preoccupied on a cell phone device sending or reading text messages. This distracted driver is putting not only themselves, but you, me and our families at unnecessary risk, so much so that the Tennessee legislature has made texting while driving illegal in Tennessee.

Feb. 1, 2011 February declared month BC RCMP target drivers using cell phone RCMP are ramping up efforts to stop people from using their cell phones while driving. February has been declared Distracted Driving Month in British Columbia in an effort to make roads safer. Of the 104 distracted driving related motor vehicle fatalities in 2010, 30 of them happened in the Southeast District of BC which includes the Kelowna area. RCMP say operating a vehicle is challenging enough with traffic flow, time constraints, weather conditions, passengers and operating on board equipment.

Jan. 31, 2011 Family grieves woman killed in Newton A dozen bouquets of flowers lie at a roadside memorial for Harpreet Kaur Mann, who was struck and killed while walking home from her job at Kentucky Fried Chicken last Thursday about 11 p.m. Surrey RCMP Cpl. Drew Grainger said Mounties are currently investigating the mechanical condition of the car and the possibility the driver was distracted, along with many other details.

Jan. 31, 2011 B.C. drivers ignore cellphone driving ban One year after B.C.’s distracted driving law was implemented, police said they’re catching too many drivers using hand-held cellphones while driving. In 2010, police issued 32,000 tickets to distracted drivers provincewide. Distracted driving is a leading cause of fatal traffic accidents. It’s blamed for one-third of all traffic-related deaths in B.C. In Vancouver, police said distracted driving is a factor in 48 per cent of all traffic fatalities.

Jan. 20, 2011 A Short-Circuit to Distracted Driving Cellular carriers, having spent years trying to blanket the nation with phone service, are now working on ways to stop people from getting calls and texts when they are behind the wheel. The technology is aimed at curbing dangerous distractions by temporarily interrupting service, short-circuiting the temptation for people to respond to the chime of their phones.

Jan. 19, 2011 Police Say Hands-Free Texting While Driving Still Risky In today’s rather obvious news, police say that hands-free texting while driving is still a risky proposition. In all honesty, it’s not at all unreasonable to say that anything that takes our attention off the task at hand, in this case driving an automobile, is probably a pretty bad idea.

Jan. 17, 2011 Is focus on distracted driving going down the wrong road? Thursday, LaHood will join safety advocates and businesses to celebrate the one-year anniversary of FocusDriven, a new advocacy group described as being like MADD, which is aimed at drunken drivers, to combat distracted driving. The DOT says distracted driving was linked to 10% of fatal crashes in 2005. That increased to 16% in 2008 and leveled off at 16% in 2009, thanks to DOT’s efforts.

Jan. 10, 2011 One year later – has B.C.’s distracted driving law made our roads safer? “BURNABY, BC, Jan. 10 /CNW/ – B.C.’s ban on hand-held cell phone use and texting while driving has now been in place for a year. Are you abiding by the law? What do you see other drivers doing? Is the law being adequately enforced? Do you think the law has made our roads safer? These questions and others are being put to drivers in an online survey conducted this month by the British Columbia Automobile Association (BCAA). The survey is open to all B.C. drivers on BCAA’s website, BCAA.com, is anonymous and takes about five minutes to complete.”

Jan. 7, 2011 Distracted Driving in NY Takes Deadly Bite out of The Big Apple “By now, most of us realize that texting and driving do not mix. Yet, drivers who are distracted by various tech-toys remain a constant source of danger for commuters and pedestrians alike. In September, four people were killed and 24 injured when a New York bus driver crashed into a railroad overpass. The driver later admitted that he was distracted by his personal GPS device. This is just one tragic example of the distracted driving accidents that plague our states’ roads.”

Jan. 6, 2011 tiwiFamily Puts the Brakes on Distracted Driving “Teens and distracted driving are the two biggest problems on the roads today. Technology company, inthinc Technology Solutions Inc, has a product ready for worried parents or business users looking to track employees. The tiwiFamily is built to make teen driving not only safer, but allow parents to keep tabs on their driving teens.”

Jan. 5, 2011 Teens injured in car crash, one in serious condition “An accident several days after Christmas has left one area youth seriously injured. According to Capt. John Roberts of the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office, the accident occurred when the driver of the car that ran the red light was distracted by something inside the vehicle and was unable to stop in time.”

Jan. 5, 2011 Miss America Contestant, State Farm® Drive Dollars to Students Via Facebook “Leading up to the Miss America pageant Jan. 15, State Farm is joining Miss South Dakota to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving. Miss South Dakota, Loren Vaillancourt, lost her only sibling last year as a consequence of distracted driving.“

Dec. 28, 2010 AT&T launches campaign to stop texting and driving “American telecommunications giant AT&T has launched a campaign to discourage people from texting and driving, producing a powerful 10-minute video recounting the stories of people whose lives have been adversely affected by the need to SMS on the go.”

Dec. 22, 2010 Helpful Tips To Avoid Distracted Driving “Driving has become increasingly more dangerous with the advent of text messaging and mp3 players.”

Dec. 17, 2010 Companies Taking The Lead on Distracted Driving “Recently, the Walt Disney Company banned all of its employees from texting while driving. The ban applies whenever the employee is on-the-clock, even if the employee is driving his or her personal vehicle.”

Dec. 16, 2010 Truckers question Alta. distracted-driving law “In addition to barring people from phoning, texting or emailing while driving, the law stipulates that truckers can only use their hand-held CB radios on the road when talking to their employers or to an escort truck, or during an emergency.”

Dec. 15, 2010 Brooklyn Teen Facing 4 Years in Jail for Texting While Driving “A 19 year-old girl from Brooklyn, who was involved in a car accident because she was allegedly texting while driving, is now being charged of negligent homicide and may face up to 4 years in jail because of her driving distraction.”

Dec. 11, 2010 No charges in fatal Gatineau crash caused by distracted driving, police say “No charges will be laid in the two-vehicle crash Tuesday morning in Gatineau that killed an eight-year-old boy, police said Friday. The boy’s mother, a 28-year-old woman from Gatineau, was taken to hospital with a minor wrist injury.”

Dec. 3, 2010 Car & Driver Study Says Texting While Driving Is More Dangerous Than Drunk Driving “A study by Car and Driver Magazine found that people are more dangerous drivers when they are texting than when they are drunk. As the problem of distracted driving gains attention across the nation, the study underscores the true danger it poses of motor vehicle accidents . The need to stop distracted driving is clear.”

Nov. 17, 2010 Drop It And Drive ~ D.I.A.D. − GlobalBC TV Reporter Elaine Yong Covers D.I.A.D. Campaign Launch (Posted on DIAD-DropItAndDrive Facebook page: scroll down on updates to see link to video)

Nov. 17, 2010 Disney bans texting while driving for job “The new ban which recently took effect covers all Disney workers, including the 60,000 employees at Orlando-based Walt Disney World. Even before the companywide policy was issued, Disney World employees whose jobs involve transporting guests, such as bus drivers and monorail pilots, were already prohibited from texting. The policy does not apply to employees during their drives to or from work.”

Nov 17, 2010 Distracted driving legislation approved by Alberta government “No more fiddling with your iPod on the highway, texting at stoplights or putting on lipstick in the rear-view mirror: Alberta’s distracted driving bill passed third reading in the legislature Wednesday, which means numerous behind-the-wheel diversions will soon be illegal.”

Sept. 28, 2010 žTexting bans don’t increase road safety: study “Laws that ban texting while driving are ineffective at best and could even be counter-productive because they lead to surreptitious behaviour behind the wheel, according to a study funded by the U.S. auto insurance industry.”

Sept. 24, 2010 žTalking to death: texts, phones kill 16,000: study “Drivers distracted by talking or texting on cell phones killed an estimated 16,000 people from 2001 to 2007, U.S. researchers reported on Thursday.The estimate, one of the first scientific attempts to quantify how many people have died in accidents caused specifically by mobile telephone distractions, also suggests a growing number of these drivers are under 30.”

Sept. 23, 2010 Texting while driving not thought by teens to be as dangerous as drunk driving: survey “Teenagers think texting while driving is not as dangerous as driving drunk, a new survey shows, highlighting the way technology permeates the lifestyle of many young people — and how for some of them, the risks of distracted driving are going unnoticed. A report by the U.S. Transportation Department this week said 5,474 people died in 4,898 crashes linked to distracted driving last year, down slightly from 5,838 deaths in 5,307 crashes in 2008. Of those in 2009, about 1,000 involved cell phones. Distracted drivers were a factor in 16 percent of crashes and deaths in both years. Car crashes are the No. 1 cause of teenagers’ death in the United States, according to State Farm.”

Aug. 19, 2010 Survey Says 86% of Teen Drivers Distracted – But Not By What You Think “In its survey of 2,000 drivers ages 16-19, the two distractions that teens engaged in most were adjusting the radio (73 percent) and eating (61 percent).  Coming in third was talking on a cell phone ( 60 percent).”

July 19, 2010 žFatal rollover blamed on distracted driving “Police say distracted driving could be to blame for a rollover that killed an 18-year-old man west of Calgary Sunday morning. Investigators said they believe distracted driving was a contributing factor in the collision, while alcohol and drug use were not.”

Feb. 10, 2010 Distracted Driver Faces up to 9 Years in Prison “On January 26th, an Orange County man was found guilty of manslaughter with gross negligence for killing a pedestrian in August 2008 because he was texting while driving. He unfortunately ran over a 32 year old woman who was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident due to fatal injuries to her head, torso, and extremities.  The driver admitted to the Newport Beach Police that he never saw the woman crossing the street.”