heraldsun_att campaign highlights dangers of distracted driving 091015

AT&T campaign highlights dangers of distracted driving September 10, 2015 BY Alex Dixon DURHAM — CJ Johnson wants to bring the stigma around texting and driving to the level of that around drunken driving. A spokesperson for AT&T’s It Can Wait campaign, Johnson travels around the country informing people of the dangers of using smartphones while driving. On Wednesday, the campaign came to Durham, complete with a virtual reality simulator that puts participants in the seat of someone distracted by his phone. After several near misses with a baby stroller, bikers and a car in the adjacent lane, for the sake of texts about what’s for dinner, the ride culminates in a T-bone collision that shatters the windshield and deploys the airbag. “You’re driving blind,” Johnson said of smartphone use while driving. “The only way to stop is to put your phone down.” Johnson said an estimated 70 percent of drivers use smartphones while driving, and even though campaigns often target schools and younger drivers, it’s not limited to one demographic.

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AT&T campaign highlights dangers of distracted driving

September 10, 2015

BY Alex Dixon

DURHAM — CJ Johnson wants to bring the stigma around texting and driving to the level of that around drunken driving.

A spokesperson for AT&T’s It Can Wait campaign, Johnson travels around the country informing people of the dangers of using smartphones while driving.

On Wednesday, the campaign came to Durham, complete with a virtual reality simulator that puts participants in the seat of someone distracted by his phone.

After several near misses with a baby stroller, bikers and a car in the adjacent lane, for the sake of texts about what’s for dinner, the ride culminates in a T-bone collision that shatters the windshield and deploys the airbag.

“You’re driving blind,” Johnson said of smartphone use while driving. “The only way to stop is to put your phone down.”

Johnson said an estimated 70 percent of drivers use smartphones while driving, and even though campaigns often target schools and younger drivers, it’s not limited to one demographic.

“This is a very new behavior,” he said. “Fifteen years ago, we didn’t have smartphones … the biggest thing is awareness.”

And while some may think smartphone distractions are mainly limited to text, AT&T data shows that nearly 40 percent of smartphone users use social media while driving, 33 percent use email and 17 percent take photos.

“When we launched It Can Wait five years ago, we pleaded with people to realize that no text is worth a life,” AT&T’s global marketing officer Lori Lee said in a statement. “The same applies

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to other smartphone activities that people are doing while driving. For the sake of you and those around you, please keep your eyes on the road, not on your phone.”

According to the US Department of Transportation, 3,154 people were killed in motor vehicle incidents involving distracted drivers in 2013.

AT&T even has an app to help block out the distractions of smartphones while driving, Johnson said.

Called Drive Mode, the app silences incoming text message alerts and sends an auto-reply to contacts letting them know the user is behind the wheel.

“Our main goal is to save lives,” Johnson said. “We challenge everyday that no post, text (or) glance is worth your life or somebody else’s life.”

Contact Alex Dixon: [email protected], 919-419-6684