According to a new study from The U.S. Department of Transportation and Consumer Reports, 63% of people under the age of 30 admitted to talking on their cell phones while driving in the past 30 days. Another 30% of them admitted to texting while driving, and just 30% of drivers under 30 thought that was a problem. It's not like their rear view window was blocked by a bunch of cats or anything.
About 41% of drivers over 30, who probably vividly remember driving in a time before cell phones, say they have talked on a cell phone while driving in the past 30 days, and just 9% say they texted. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said, “Distracted driving has become a deadly epidemic on America’s roads, and teens are especially vulnerable because of their inexperience behind the wheel and, often, peer pressure."
Consumer Reports has also launched a guide on how to avoid distracted driving [pdf], because apparently common sense just doesn't apply anymore. But 78% of survey respondents say they curbed their texting while driving habits, and 66% of them say it was because of reading or hearing about the dangers. Just remember that we can barely handle texting while walking.
