The Ohio State Highway Patrol will be joining forces with local law enforcement for a distracted driving enforcement and awareness effort April 10 – 15, 2014 in an effort to reduce distracted driving related crashes and raise awareness about the dangers distracted driving creates. This initiative is part of a campaign created by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in their effort to curb distracted driving behaviors nationwide.
According to the NHTSA, in 2012 in the United States, 3,331 people were killed and 387,000 people were injured in crashes involving a distracted driver.
“Every time someone takes their eyes or their focus off the road – even for just a few seconds – they put their lives and the lives of others in danger,” said Colonel Paul A. Pride, Patrol Superintendent. “Distracted driving is unsafe, irresponsible and in a split second, its consequences can be devastating. Remember – Stay Alive, Don’t Text and Drive.”
The Patrol will be focusing on crash causing violations that may be caused by distracted driving, including; aggressive driving, marked lanes violations, following too closely and driving left of center. They will also be enforcing Ohio’s texting and driving law.
Sending or receiving a text message takes a driver’s eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, the equivalent, at 55 mph, of driving the length of an entire football field.
Distracted driving is any non-driving activity a person engages in that has the potential to distract him or her from the primary task of driving and increases the risk of crashing. Distractions can be Visual – taking eyes off of the road; Manual – taking hands off the wheel; or Cognitive – taking the mind off driving. Texting while driving is an example that results in all three types of distraction.
The Ohio Department of Public Safety and the Ohio State Highway Patrol have joined 10TV’s Maria’s Message, discouraging distracted driving. For more information on Maria’s Message, visit www.10tv.com/content/embeds/2014/02/marias-message.html
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