Texting, emailing, talking on cell phones, even reading on electronic devices all while driving has become a major safety issue on our roads today. This is especially holds true for our young teen drivers where studies indicate that 16% of the distracted driver fatalities are the 20-and-under age group. Additionally, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did a study indicating that out of 15,000 high school students that were polled for the survey, 58% admitted to texting or e-mailing while driving. These results are all clear indications that teen drivers must be educated on the risks of distraction driving.
As a possible solution there are several safety advocacy groups that are trying to help promote awareness of distraction driving by turning to a driving simulation program called VDI. This program was created by Virtual Driver Interactive and its’ main purpose is to modify driving behaviors by focusing on the consequences of distracted driving by showing what can happen if a driver has a crash while texting and driving. It covers everything from the simulated driving to the interaction with police, emergency medical personnel and a 20 minute real live experience featuring a judge, numerous sheriff deputies and EMTs.
The simulator starts out by having the operator driving along and then it prompts the person to start texting. Once an accident occurs, the scene changes to an actual police officer walking up to the car and questioning the driver resulting in an arrest to then being booked and finally having a court appearance. The ending sends such a powerful message to these young drivers that VDI’s surveys indicate that 86% of the teens and young adults who experienced the driving simulator said they would rarely or never drive distracted again in the future. While 71% had said that the consequences of distraction driving were much worse than they anticipated, therefore making these teens think twice about before texting and driving.
If you have a teen driver and would like to learn more about Virtual Driver Interactive, go to their website at www.driverinteractive.com/customers.shtml.
Here at Donald J. Medeiros Insurance Agency our goal is to try to help our viewers by suggesting solutions for all insurance needs. By no means can we address each reader’s specific concerns in every incident. So, we strongly advise to check with an insurance representative to address your specific needs. However, you can also contact us for any questions or concerns and we will be happy to help you. We are able to offer a complete line of personal & commercial insurance products for all of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire.
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