Distracted Driving Takes Over Drunk Driving Stats

In the United States, texting while driving has now taken over as the leading cause of death in collisions involving teens. Alarmingly, at any given hour across the United States, approximately 660,000 motorists are using their cellphone while operating a motor vehicle. Despite over 45 States taking proactive measures to combat texting through legislation, motorists continue to engage in the risky behaviour. In response to these rising and alarming statistics, a new App has been developed to help drivers when it comes to receiving text messages while driving.

messageLOUD App Designed to Minimize Distracted Driving

messageLOUD, a new App developed for download at the Google Play Store has been designed automatically read texts and email out loud so motorists can refrain from holding their phone. The messageLOUD supports a variety of email accounts such as Outlook, Hotmail and Gmail. The App is activated when the driver enters the vehicle and sets it to DRIVEmode. A driver can customize an auto-responder in advance of driving, decide which contacts will be responded to and which will be ignored and the App is also Bluetooth compatible.

While the reasoning behind the messageLOUD makes sense, drivers will not be handling their phones while driving, it does not address the fundamental aspect of distracted driving which is that any action that takes a driver away from the task of driving is considered to be distracting. Specifically, in this particular case, the interruption of driving by an incoming text by, in essence, a hands-free delivery is still distracting.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), driving a motor vehicle while texting is six times more dangerous than while driving under the influence of alcohol. So why do motorists continue to engage in an activity they know is wrong, that can have dire consequences and is against the law? The reasons are not as complicated as one may think according to Young Drivers of Canada.

Today’s society is instantaneous, meaning that we receive and respond to information in real time. For many, this behaviour stems from the “Fear of Missing Out” or FOMO. For many motorists, the learned behaviour to respond to a text or call in real time overpowers logic and the knowledge that texting and driving are illegal. This tendency of behaviour is further verified by the Center for Internet and Technology Addiction, which recently revealed that seventy percent of drivers admit to using their phones while driving, with sixty-one percent admitting to texting while driving and thirty-three percent admitting to reading emails while driving.

Young Drivers of Canada suggests drivers;

1. Turn their phones off when they enter their vehicle to avoid any temptations caused by notification bings and pings.

2. Lock turned off smartphones in the glove box or trunk to further prevent any temptations.

3. Let family and friends know that you are driving and will not respond to texts or calls during the journey.

Texts and calls will always be there when you arrive at your destination. The objective is to arrive at your destination without causing a collision or fatality along the way!