A small distraction behind the wheel can lead to big danger on the road. In this fast-paced age of smartphones and continual connectivity, the number of beeps, vibrations, notifications and other little attention diverters seems to be mounting by the day. But a public awareness campaign seeks to remind us that when we're driving, "there are no small distractions."
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Now in its fifth year, the Decide to Drive campaign is a joint effort by the suburban Chicago-based American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, which comprises a dozen top automakers from the U.S., Japan and Europe. The coalition works to remind motorists that using their hand-held mobile devices as well as eating, drinking and grooming behind the wheel are all dangerously distracting.
Such distractions resulted in 424,000 people being injured in related car crashes in 2013, up 3,000 from the previous year. Meanwhile, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 35,000 people are killed each year in U.S. car crashes overall, nearly 14,000 of which occur in the nation's 50 largest metropolitan areas. The Decide to Drive campaign is focusing its efforts on the top 10 cities on that list, which includes New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Miami, Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Believe it or not, bone doctors would prefer not to have to fix people's bones if it can be avoided. "We'd rather all drivers decide to drive each time they get in the car to keep their bones and limbs intact," Douglas Dirschl, an orthopedic trauma surgeon and coalition spokesman, said in a statement.
The campaign's "wreck-less checklist" recommends nine ways to avoid distracted driving:
1. Put on any accessories, be they sunglasses or Bluetooth earpieces, before starting the car.
2. Adjust seats, headrests, vehicle controls and mirrors, and fasten your seat belt before moving.
3. Keep reading materials and other eye diverters out of reach, pre-load music selections and adjust the stereo volume to a level that still allows you to hear emergency sirens.
4. Enter your destination in the navigation system or consult your directions before driving.
5. Stop in a safe area before tending to your children or pets.
6. Never apply makeup, groom, polish your nails or change clothes while driving.
7. Avoid eating or drinking.
8. No texting, phone calls, taking photos or other device play.
9. Keep your eyes on the road and hands on the wheel at all times.
In addition, a series of five videos produced by the campaign uses absurdity to illustrate the dangers of distracted driving. One shows a bicyclist using a cartoonishly large smartphone crashing into a fruit stand, while another shows a woman with an equally ridiculously sized lipstick applying her makeup and colliding with another woman at a crosswalk. Watch the videos here.
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