
Each April, we nationally recognize the vital importance of Distracted Driving Awareness. One too many lives have been lost to distracted driving. Today, at least eight people a day are killed in distracted driving crashes. Distracted driving isn’t just risky for you, it can be deadly for everyone involved — including passengers, nearby drivers and pedestrians, or other bystanders.
According to the National Safety Council (NSC), America’s leading non-profit safety advocate, new estimates of total motor-vehicle deaths show that our roads are the most dangerous they have been in years.
At any given moment, approximately 660,000 drivers are using or manipulating electronic devices such as cellphones and infotainment systems. Regardless of handheld or hands-free, allowing distractions while driving pose dangerous risks for everyone!
If something requires your hands, your eyes or your attention while you’re driving… IT’S A DISTRACTION!
Take the Just Drive Pledge and help to #KeepEachOtherSafe.
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Courtesy: National Safety Council (NSC)
Everyday examples include:
Follow these safety tips before you drive:
If you must send or receive a text:
If you cannot resist the temptation to look at your phone:
Or… Pay the price!
Talking or texting while driving is one of the most dangerous and deadliest forms of distracted driving. On average, younger drivers ages 16 to 24-years old are more distracted by devices—but we’re all at risk for distracted-driving crashes!
As of 2023, forty-eight U.S. states successfully passed laws making it illegal to text while driving. To learn more about the laws in your state and community, visit the Governors Highway Safety Association at ghsa.org.
Pledge today!
Join HIPRC in taking the pledge to #JustDrive and share this vital information with your family, friends and community. Learn more at nsc.org/justdrive.
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Source: National Safety Council (NSC), Traffic Safety Marketing (TSM) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
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Source: National Safety Council (NSC), Traffic Safety Marketing (TSM), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT).
That’s a SIGNIFICANT increase! And, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), speeding, distracted driving and impaired driving during the COVID-19 pandemic all played a role.
So, whether you’re a PEDESTRIAN or a DRIVER — please do your part to keep everyone safe!
Follow these helpful tips:
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Source: National Safety Council (NSC) and Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA).
Recognized each April, NWZAW happens at the start of construction season to encourage safe driving through highway work zones.
This year, NWZAW is hosted April 17th – 21st by the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT).
This year’s theme, ‘You play a role in work zone safety. Work with us.,’ helps to remind everyone of how vitally important it is for drivers and pedestrians to TAKE EXTRA CAUTION when traveling through work zones.
This year’s commemoration will include:
To learn more about how you can participate and make your voice count, visit: nwzaw.org.
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Source: American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA) and 2023 National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW)
Click below to learn more:
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Source: National Work Zone Safety Information Clearinghouse, a project of the ARTBA Transportation Development Foundation; the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT); and Driving Tests.
The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) is your state’s voice on highway safety.
Visit ghsa.org to learn about statewide laws on distracted driving.
The National Safety Council (NSC) is America’s leading nonprofit safety advocate focused on eliminating the leading causes of preventable injuries and deaths. Having pioneered the nation’s first Defensive Driving Course and trained over 80 million drivers, NSC continues to be the most trusted name in defensive driving training in the United States.
NSC’s Defensive Driving Courses are hosted online and deliver the most relevant, leading-edge content to motivate and educate drivers to be safe and responsible in avoiding collisions, crashes, injuries or worse.
For more information or to register, visit: nsc.org.
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Source: National Safety Council (NSC).
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Source: National Safety Council (NSC), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT).
According to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), “zero” is the only acceptable number of deaths on our nation’s roads. Everyone must accept that fatalities and serious injuries are unacceptable and preventable.
Zero is our goal — a Safe System is how we get there!
Reaching zero deaths requires the implementation of the Safe System approach (vs Traditional Road Safety Practices) which places safety first and foremost in our road systems.
Implementing the Safe System approach is our shared responsibility, and we all have a role. It requires shifting how we think about transportation safety and how we prioritize our transportation investments.
To learn more, visit: transportation.gov.
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Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).