The Responsibility Project^®. Exploring what it means to do the right thing

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• May 16, 2010 by Carol Baker

  TWD is one of the most dangerous activities in which anyone can engage. Ultimately, it's the issue of putting other people in danger and the collateral damage that comes with it (the families of the victims). I confess that I have answered my cell phone while driving but have come to realize how even that is just as irresponsible as texting while driving. I have made a commitment to myself and every other driver on the road to turn my phone off while driving. It's been three months now and I'm convinced it's made me a more aware driver. There is no benefit to leaving the phone on and no communication won't wait until I am safely to my destination. The risks are simply too great. While I have never texted while driving I know dozens of teens who do and I can only hope they will see the light before it's too late.

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  • May 27, 2010 by Josh Stevesn

    I agree, this is something people take for granted. It is a matter of making it home safely or not. t is the matter of it may not be you whose life you destroy. is a call or a text really that important? I myself have been guilty of talking while driving... I personally am not a texter, so that is not an issue, but while driving an hour in am ordinary day, I see 10 to 12 people talking, texting, reading newspapers... have people forgotten that they are not in their living rooms? Just think about what could happen.....

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  • August 25, 2010 by bruce

    i am a bike rider and a auto driver. what gets me so mad is when bikers blow thru red lights or make no attempt to stop before making a turn. also when they arrive at a street while riding grants trail they press the crossing button and then ride right across the street before the light for the autos turn red and they still have the dont walk light lit. then the light turns red for the street and no one is there to cross the street even though the traffic is stopped. we as bike riders need to remember we are supposed to abide by traffic rules just as the autos are supposed to.

    thanks

    bruce

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  • September 17, 2010 by Morgan Paige

    This is a great way to spread awareness of the dangers of distracted driving! Here is a link to a website that expands on promoting safety concerning teen driversspecifically. It is filled with webisodes, PSAs, and even more concerning the subject! http://impactteendrivers.org/

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  • October 20, 2010 by Bernice Lock

    Texting while driving is one of the most irresponsible acts someone operating a motor vehicle can do.A motor vehicle can be turned into a deadly weapon in a siingle second and I think those people who cannot get that through their heads need to be educated and not just fined.Not everything is about money;this is more about irresponsibility and selfishness.I believe far too many people have lost their ability to tell the difference between right and wrong.Cell phones can be a wonderful convenience and have saved many lives when people found themselves in emergency situations;but given the wrong circumstance,can prove deadly and more needs to be done to make people understand that you just can't do it when it takes your attention away from doing something as important as operating a motor vehicle, or even riding a bike.Anything that takes your attention away from you controlling thousands of pounds of weight or possibly causing physical harm by your trying to perform two acts that require your full and uninterrupted attention, needs to be impressed on people.It is irresponsible to allow your actions to possibly cause an emergency situation when it could have been avoided by simply doing the "RESPONSIBLE" thing and waiting until the appropriate time and place.People need to understand that just because the tool is there, sometimes it's just not right to use it at the wrong moment.

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  • February 10, 2011 by Patricia

    I agree completely with this. I think that cell phones should be turned off, because some people use bluetooths and they are in their ears, or headphones to your their cell phones and that is just as dangerous as texting and driving because you can not pay 80% of your attention on your cell phone, and 100% on the road. It is just physically impossible. Some people think that they are just the best drivers in the world, what happens if you're texting, and somthing happens right in front of you, and you are paying attention, so you run right into it? That is the thing that is the most scary to me, you can be looking at your phone or something for just a millisecond, and boom, it happens. Also, ipods are dangerous in cars because you have to look at them to pick the songs you want to listen too, so I think they should be turned off to. People just need to think about all the possiblities.

    Thank you.

    Patricia, 15

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• May 19, 2010 by CINDY MERCADO

  IT SHOULD BE AGAINST THE LAW FOR ANYONE DRIVING TO BE ALLOWED TO BE ON PHONE OR TO EVEN BE TEXTING WHILE DRIVING IF NEED TO BE DOING EITHER ONE AND IT CAN NOT WAIT PULL OFF ROAD AND PARK WERE SAFE TO DO SO

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  • September 1, 2010 by Nate

    i use my phone ALL THE TIME when behind the wheel, when i call the police on drunk drivers, people going way past speed limits aka make me look like im standing still, And when i see things "out of the ordinary. The fact of the matter is there are times when using a phone ABSOLUTELY CANNOT WAIT. however when using the phone you have to have the mindset to throw the phone down to drive and not care about being rude.

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• May 20, 2010 by wendy brown

  Talking on the phone, I don.t think is bad . You do talk with people when they are in the vehicle with you. It is when you are texting and dialing that you are not attentive to the road as you should be. Most people are looking at what they are doing when this is happening and not looking as close to the road and the things that are going on around them. Their attention is elswhere.

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• May 27, 2010 by Tina Fletcher

  You have to put your money where your mouth is - I promised my daughter I would not text and drive if she agreed to do the same. And that means that I don't text even when she's NOT in the car! Its tempting sometimes..but its worth the piece of mind knowing that my daughter (and I) are somewhat safer.

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• May 27, 2010 by Lee Brock

  Talking on the phone while driving is no different than talking to a person sitting right next to you. It’s been proven that it’s not the phone that causes the driver to be distracted, it’s the conversation. So unless you want to make it illegal for all drivers to never speak while driving, you shouldn’t make a law against this. For people who say that talking on the phone takes a hand off the steering wheel, I only drive with one hand anyway, so whether my free hand is in my lap, resting on the door, or holding a phone up to my ear, it’s all the same.

  As for texting, I’m sorry to say that the only people who will have a problem with texting and driving are just terrible at texting. Hear me out before letting me have it. I text constantly, but I hardly look at the phone at all when I do; I keep my eyes on the road while pushing the buttons. When you type at the computer, chances are you, like me, don’t look at the keyboard while you do because you’ve memorized the keyboard. This is what many people do when texting, but the people who must look at their phone for five seconds at a time to send a simple text obviously shouldn’t be doing it while driving. When I send a full text, from the time I open my phone to the time I hit send, I probably look at my phone for a split second twice at the most. It takes me far more time to change the radio station in my car, which keeps my eyes off the road for longer which means it’s more dangerous, but nobody’s trying to ban changing the radio station.

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  • May 27, 2010 by bird

    Do you text with one hand? How do you canyou text with your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road? I should mention that I always pull over if possible when I'm driving and my cell rings. If there's no place to pull over, I simply let voicemail pick up. That's the point of having voicemail.

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    • May 27, 2010 by Lee Brock

      “Do you text with one hand?” While driving, yes. I just hold it in one hand and use my thumb, not really that difficult.

      “How do you canyou text with your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road?” Like I said in my original post above, “When you type at the computer, chances are you, like me, don’t look at the keyboard while you do because you’ve memorized the keyboard. This is what many people do when texting…” It’s not really that difficult to memorize a few buttons on your phone. It’s nothing compared to learning a keyboard. Once you’ve sent many texts, you remember what sequence of buttons you must press to set the text up (contacts, type the first couple letters of the person’s name, options, new message), and after a while you don’t even think about it. Again, this is exactly like sitting at the computer and typing out a long sentence without even really thinking about the typing part of it. You just think the sentence and your fingers just sort of move by themselves.

      But I repeat myself, if you can’t text like I can, you certainly shouldn’t be texting while driving. It’s just not a distraction for me, it sort of second nature. Similar to how you don’t find it difficult to have a conversation with someone next to you while driving, it’s second nature to me to just pick up my phone and text someone without being distracted. Like I also said before, it’s more of a distraction for me when I hear a song on the radio I don’t like and I change the station. I take my eyes of the road longer for this and also have to lean forward in my seat to do so, yet I’ve never heard a single person argue that changing the radio station while driving be illegal.

      I just find it kind of annoying that the strong majority of people who are opposed to texting while driving, my parents for example, hardly know anything about texting and think it’s some complicated process. Many people compare it to being on a laptop and sending message to friends when it’s nothing of the sort.

  • May 27, 2010 by Kay P

    While I will agree with you that there are always certain distractions while driving such as chatting with a passenger in your car, you will never convince me that texting is a safe practice no matter how good you are at it. There is no "device" required and a whole different set of disciplines is used when talking to a person (or singing to the radio).

    Yyou have the opportunity to keep both of your hands on the steering wheel and your eyes on the road when talking with someone in your vehicle, I will even go so far to say such would be the case if you were talking on your cell with a "hands free" device, should one need to be that connected, texting just does NOT allow for the same. When it comes down to having to react to a driving hazard you have just cut down your ability to respond by a fair margin.

    Think about this.... would this really be the issue that it is today if it were not causing so many accidents and even deaths?

    Do not missunderstand, I am sure I have made my fair share of driving mistakes over the years but if I can cut down the likelihood of causing one by simply not using a cell phone while driving, then that's that. No, I am not the best of texters so of course will not do so while driving, but more importantly I have a healthy respect for the road, and those that I share it with.

    Stay Safe

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    • May 28, 2010 by Lee Brock

      Well of course it's not safe. Every single thing you do in the car while driving that isn't paying attention to the road isn't safe. Driving period isn't safe. You can do everything right and still be killed pulling out of the driveway.

      And I already explain that "I only drive with one hand anyway, so whether my free hand is in my lap, resting on the door, or holding a phone up to my ear, it’s all the same" and that I don't look at my phone while I text. And just like you don't think about talking to someone next to you, I don't think about sending a text. I just think the sentence and my thumb types it without thinking, just like most people typing at a computer. But again, obviously not everyone can do this.

  • June 1, 2010 by Carol

    If you really believe that texting while driving takes you less time than changing a radio station, this is a recipe for disaster. Even if you can text without looking, many do not have a phone that allows for one handed texting. In addition to that, and more importantly, when you receive a response, it is impossible to review that response wtihout looking at your phone and taking your eyes off the road. As somone who used to text on the road, I can attest to the fact that even looking at that response causes me to lose my focus putting me in harms way. Another question I pose to you, how would you feel if someone else caused an accident involving you while they were texting and driving? I believe you are in the minority when it comes to being able to text without looking at your keyboard. I have seen many an 'almost accident' clearly due to cell phone usage so its definitely not an impossibility. Wouldn't you be in favor of texting laws at that point? If it meant the difference between being injured temporarily or permanently or even worse, killed?

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    • June 4, 2010 by Lee Brock

      I meant that I have to take my eyes off the road longer when changing the radio station and also shift forward in my seat, not that it actually took more time to change the station. And actually, I'd probably be all for making texting while driving illegal assuming that it will actually make the road safer.

      This is what I mean by it. Right now, we have speed limits on all roads. The speed limit on the highway here is almost always 55 mph. It is illegal to drive faster than the posted speed limit. It isn't always enforced this strictly, but you can get a ticket by going 56 mph. Just like texting while driving, breaking this law is an unnecessary risk for people while driving and causes many accidents on the road, even more than texting. But think about how many people actually drive at or below the speed limit while on the freeway. So really, this entire argument could be used for speed limits as well. You’d be much safer by driving at or below the speed limit, and speed is a factor in more accidents and deaths than any other factor, so why do people insist on driving faster?

      “it is impossible to review that response wtihout looking at your phone and taking your eyes off the road”

      The same can be said for reading signs, billboards, and anything really. Like I said before, doing ANYTHING on the road that isn’t paying attention to the road can be considered dangerous and is an unnecessary risk, yet most people still do those things. Like I said, I’d be all for a ban on texting while driving if it will actually cut down on the people doing it, but I’m just concerned with how this law will be enforced this. And just like how speeding a little most likely won’t cause an accident, me sending a quick text most likely won’t either. This is all just my opinion.

  • August 8, 2010 by Patricia

    You sound very young, I hope to see you live to be 30.

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  • February 18, 2011 by Susan

    well whoop ti do for you! you an text without looking. but you contraicted yourself when you said i hardly look at my phone and i deep my eyes on the road and i only look at my phone for a split wecond twie. well it only takes a split second to take someones live. and for you to sit there and say that people that can't text while not looking at their phone shouldn't text while driving but it is ok for you too because you can is just papostrious. you need to be educated on what a split second of someones life can mean.

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• May 27, 2010 by Todd Keene

  This video provides great insight into a major problem on the roads today. Parents should not allow a teenager old enough to drive to have or use texting and only allow them to use the phone for calling home and emergency use.

  I ride my bicycle 2 to 3 times per week and have often thought about the impacts of cell phone/texting use and how concerned I should be for my own life. Having watched this video my concerns are confirmed.

  Sure there are other distractions while driving but texting is the equivalent of reading a book while driving. Even if you can text with your eyes on the road you are distracted and a danger to yourself and others.

  In my opinion the penalty for texting while driving should be the same as a DWI. Even then I'm sure it would not cure the problem.

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• May 27, 2010 by Timothy Mahoney

  Texting While Driving (TWD) is another way to multi-task. There's just one problem...We do not have the capability to multi-think. Unlike Intel and AMD our brains are confined to one processer, no hypertheading or quad core technology included. Therefore, all the time spent thinking, reading, and responding while TWD takes away valuable processing time while driving. Time needed to avoid the child running into the road, the family dog, a moose, another car, red light, and all of the other road hazards out there. All of your senses are needed to drive a car safely and even then sometimes thats not enough. So please, use you processing power to drive and save lives.

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• May 27, 2010 by Deeana

  If you make texting while driving against the law then add these to the list, too. - using an MP3 player while driving - handing over a cookie to your fussy child in the backseat while driving - putting on makeup while driving - picking up your coffee and taking a sip while driving Of course, I'm being sarcastic. Almost anything you do while driving can distract you on the road so unless you make it law that a person must have their eyes only on the road and both hands on the wheel at all times, this isn't going to work. How is it that I'm able to text while driving and nothing has ever happened? In fact, I seem to drive more safely while I'm texting because I have the common sense to know that I am SLIGHTLY distracted, so I stay a little further away from the car in front of me. People already drove unsafely before twd became an issue and no one seemed to care then. You can't force people to use their brains by creating laws.

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  • July 7, 2010 by CeeCee

    "You can't force people to use their brains by creating laws."

    That's why we have laws to protect us from people who are incapable of thinking of the impact of their actions on others.

    The definition of a psychopath is someone who has utter disregard for the well being of others. We put psychopaths in jail who murder others. We also do the same to drunk drivers who drink and drive and whose behavior results in traffic deaths. I don't see how distracted driving is any different from drunk driving. Just different kinds of impairment, but still impaired.

    The threat of punishment may not deter the psychopath from killing or the drunk driver from acting irresponsibly or the text messenger from texting, but it will be sobering to at least a few as they some of their friends receive some kind of punishment for texting while driving.

    Make texting illegal while driving.

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• May 28, 2010 by Bobbie Jo

  I loved this post

  "May 27, 2010 by Deeana If you make texting while driving against the law then add these to the list, too using an MP3 player while driving - handing over a cookie to your fussy child in the backseat while driving - putting on makeup while driving - picking up your coffee and taking a sip while driving You can't force people to use their brains by creating laws.".

  Exactly, some people are stupid enough to believe that you can actually do that.

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• May 28, 2010 by George Earley

  I am an older person and have not texted. I did spend several weeks in the hospital when a car going in the opposite direction crossed the center line and hit my car. The driver reached for a package of cigarettes on the seat beside him. So it seems pretty apparent that inattention, only a fraction of an instant, and speed do kill. The automobile weighs several thousand pounds and at any speed requires a significant distance to stop. That is in addition to the drifting that happens when one takes their eyes off the road. Many of the above comments are from young people who say "Oh I can text without looking." I am certain that they will look down occasionally and how do they read the replies? The greatest gift anyone could give to mankind is to convince all young people that they are not invincible and it could happen to them. Your program is a step in the right direction keep it up.

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• May 28, 2010 by SecondOpinion

  Driving is not a time for multi-tasking. Your full focus should be on driving, focus being more than just where you are looking. I'm 100% in support of laws that make texting while driving illegal. Engaging in behavior that puts you at risk is a personal choice, when it puts others at risk, there should be no choice.

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  • June 4, 2010 by Cathy

    100% Agree!! Well said.

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  • July 10, 2010 by Michelle Stultz

    I am all for the law to ban texting while driving and in my opinion, I don't think that people should answer or call people while driving! If you must do any of these things, at least pull OFF THE ROAD and PLEASE don't put yourself or other drivers in danger, It's not worth it! The phone calls and texting can wait, people's lifes cannot! Michelle Stultz, (a concerned mom of 4 teenagers)

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• June 7, 2010 by Sue

  Would you text while taking a driving test? Of course not! You wouldn't want to be distracted from the task at hand. The same holds true once you're licensed and out on the road. If you're texting, you're not 100% focused on driving. Since you're not the only one on the road, you simply don't have the right to take this risk.

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