Distracted driving kills more than 10 people every day and injures more than 1,000. Distracted driving disproportionately affects teens with more than 50% of teen crashes now thought to be caused by distracted driving. In addition to texting while driving, more and more crashes are being caused by drivers using social media apps. Teens are among the biggest users of social media apps on smartphones.
Recently, a lawsuit was filed against an 18 year old using Snapchat while allegedly going more than 100 mph causing a serious crash. End Distracted Driving Founder Joel Feldman authored this article about that incident .
“We believe that manufacturers of social media apps have a responsibility to warn users not to drive while using their apps, and, in some cases, to disable the app so that it can not be used while driving,” said Feldman. “Do you want those you care about to be in a car next to a driver who is using Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, or any other non-driving essential app?”
To reduce distracted driving crashes End Distracted Driving (EndDD.org) has joined the Partnership for Distraction-Free Driving in launching a petition drive to encourage social media companies to do the following:
- Incorporate a warning screen for their apps reminding drivers not to use the app when driving, or, as is the case with Waze have a message pop-up saying “Typing is disabled while driving. Please try again when stopped!”
- Issue a public statement encouraging drivers not to use their apps while driving
- Partner with highway safety advocates to develop responsible public policy discouraging the use of social media apps while driving
How can you help?
Sign our Petition: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/distracteddrivingpetition and ask your friends to sign the Petition. Working together we can reduce distracted driving and keep those we care about safe.
Joel Feldman
Joel Feldman is the father of the late Casey Feldman and founder of the Casey Feldman Foundation and its sponsored project, EndDD.org. He has been a practicing attorney for 34 years and a shareholder in the law firm of Anapol Weiss in Philadelphia. He received a masters in counseling in 2013 and speaks throughout the U.S. and Canada to teens and adults, changing attitudes and behaviors through the science based, End Distracted Driving program. Joel also provides death notification training to law enforcement and the medical community. Joel can be reached at [email protected]
