Today is the day people nationwide can officially pledge to not text while in the driver's seat. It comes just in time for some (the new iPhone 5 comes out Friday and might tempt new/upgraded users) and too late for others (100,000 crashes a year involve drivers who are texting, according to the National Safety Council). Here are two videos made by Catholic school students in May 2011 for an Act Out Loud competition in cooperation with Youth Traffic Safety Month.
The first is from St. Joseph High School in Santa Maria, Calif. It has an unfortunate, tragic and personal message. A 19-year-old St. Joseph graduate was killed on his bicycle by a distracted (texting) driver, also a 19-year-old.
The second video was made by Xavier College Preparatory students.
This year's contest requires holding a rally for schools interested. Registration is open now with the rally to be held in May.
Someone is killed or injured every fives minutes in the U.S. in a crash involving a driver who is texting, according to Randall Stephenson, AT&T's chief executive officer. According to an AT&T press release, the message is spreading reaching more than 75 million social media user accounts. More on a national movement to halt texting while driving.
An AT&T Drive Mode, a free app providing a customizable auto-reply while behind the wheel, has been downloaded more than 80,000 times. Get yours.
