Oprah's distracted driving show, online pledge provide huge public service

It is fitting that The Oprah Winfrey Show chose the Martin Luther King Day of Service to air its program on distracted driving. Spreading awareness about this deadly epidemic is a huge contribution to the safety of millions of Americans.

For that public service, I enthusiastically thank Oprah.

And I encourage everyone who didn't see the show to visit Oprah's website where you can watch segments of the show, read the transcript, and SIGN THE PLEDGE! 

Oprah's online pledge draws a line in the sand that says, "NO! We will not do this anymore."

I signed it. So have tens of thousands of others. Now we need you to sign it. And then we need you to get your friends and your family members to sign it. And then we need them to get their friends and family members to sign it. That's how it works, folks, moving out one expanding circle at a time.

From Oprah's website. In the top half of the image above we see all of the information necessary to navigate the intersection safely. In the bottom half we see what the distracted driver sees. Notice this driver's attention blindness literally blocks out the pedestrians, the stop sign, the bicyclist, and the crossing guard.

One of the most compelling of those is an extended video, "After the Show," of survivors telling their painful stories of loss due to distracted driving.

Now, over and over during the show, the word "preventable" comes up. Every single one of these tragic losses was preventable. Preventable just by people keeping their hands on the wheel and their minds on the road.

So, please, while we're all thinking about service, let's do what we can to end this epidemic. Visit www.distraction.gov to learn more about what we're doing and what you can do.

Then one day we will look back and say, "Yes. We kicked that deadly habit." And when that day comes, we will have all sorts of heroes to thank. Among others, we'll thank Jennifer Smith. We'll thank Shelley Forney. We'll thank Reggie Shaw.

And we'll thank Oprah Winfrey.

Comments

[Jay Anderson]

Awareness is the key to understanding how one second can change a life forever.

With that in mind, there is no reason to reinvent the wheel.

Since 2006, Stay Alive .... Just Drive! has been actively and aggressively educating drivers regarding the dangers of unsafe and distracted driving.www.sajd.org

[Michael E. Bailey]

It is teriffic that Ophra did this show and it comes at a good time to get the attention of many additional millions that make up her audiance. The Agency for Health Care Research and Quality Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project released a new paper today, Statistical Brief#84. It shows the impact traffic accidents have on hospital emergency rooms. The age group of most traffic accident patiants was 18 to 44 years old, 58.0%. Most were from large metropolitan areas 50.7%. The Discharge Status from emergency rooms was mostly treat and release 84.7%. Specialized trauma centers saw 37.2% of the cases while regular emergency rooms saw 62.8% of cases. The two biggest accident problems were sprains 44.4% and contusions 34.8%. The 18 to 44 age group is the most reckless and most likely to be trying to drive and use the phone and other dangerous activihty. Best wishes, Michael E. Bailey.

[Mouhamad A. Naboulsi]

The problem is in how we use cell phones while driving and not in using cell phones while driving. Virginia Tech Study proved with Millions of Miles and dozens of cars that talking on the cell phone is not a danger, but the physical manipulation and looking away from the road to look at the phone is the real danger. They also concluded that texting and dialing a number share the same cause “Eyes Off the Road and Hands Off The Wheel”, but texting takes longer and thus the risk is much higher.

I watched the show twice and I find it unacceptable that researchers are still using the old trick of disappearing people and traffic signs. This is voodoo science and no one can assert what disappears from drivers’ vision. Further more, when I attended the Driver Distraction summit, I clearly explained the study by Dr. Almor, Univ. South Carolina, which showed that distraction for cell phone users is dependent on the sound of the call and I further explained that a hand free ear piece have the same effect as holding the phone and thus the studies being used to show cognitive distraction are not valid for a for the speaker type hand free. A Major Headset manufacturer stopped producing them because they recognized their danger and it is time that these studies be repeated with a speaker phone and like Dr. Almor, and my research, they will see that it is possible to carryout a conversation without getting distracted if the way we use the phone is designed to work in a car instead of using it as if we are at a recliner or a desk.

The U.S. economy is no longer a manufacturing based economy and its 60% information based. Shutting off our phone is a narrow minded uninformed decision that can get us to lag behind the rest of the world.
Mouhamad A. Naboulsi, President
Applied Computer Technologies, Inc.

[Karen Hill]

I nearly fell asleep behind the wheel the other day but i had my anti sleep alarm on and it sounded so i pulled over and had a break. They are not that expensive and i got mine from www.thenonap.com

[create a free blog]

The Agency for Health Care Research and Quality Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project released a new paper today, Statistical Brief#84. It shows the impact traffic accidents have on hospital emergency rooms.

[John Delage]

NERDS!! (Please read below...)

The most sure fire way to get people to stop texting and talking on phones while driving is to associate them with being nerdy. People don't care what's right or wrong or safe, but if we could somehow attach the idea that people who do it are nerdy it will disappear overnight!

If anyone could make it happen it would be Oprah. I'm not smart enough to figure out how to make it happen but it would probably have to be imaged in Movies or on TV somehow. Unfortunately it probably won't go away on its own like fads tend to.

Just a thought I wanted to share.