How to save your own life on the road
In South Africa, according to Arrive Alive and Wheels24, distracted driving is described as “an epidemic sweeping our roads”. The National Highway Traffic Administration also puts cellphone use at the top of its list of driving distractions. The Medical Society believes that texting while driving is the most dangerous of all distractions. It’s incredibly dangerous, and everytime you do it, you inadvertently risk your own life.
Elmarie Twilley, spokesperson for Afrikaans insurance brand Virseker, put it this way: “Studies suggest that texting while driving on the road is riskier than driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. People drive more erratically when they’re texting than when they’ve been drinking alcohol.” Well, now this is getting serious…
If you’re an avid ‘texter and driver’, and you know you’re putting yourself in harm’s way, here’s how to stop the habit and be a safer driver according to Virseker.
• If you can’t drive without reaching for your phone and/or texting, then you may be addicted and it’s time for a detox.
• Lock your phone in your car’s boot while driving to avoid temptation.
• Remember that you are not monitoring the road while you are texting, you are relying on the brain’s prediction that nothing was there before. This illusion can lead to tragic results.
• If you’re one of those people who think you can multitask, you are mistaken.
• Remind yourself that just a seconds-worth of lost concentration on the road can result in a fatal accident.
• If you feel disconnected or anxious and experience “cellphone withdrawal” symptoms while driving you need to address the problem.
• Download an App which prevents messages coming through while you are driving and let’s senders know that you’re on the road.
If you still think it’s fine to text and drive, read this heartbreaking story. It will change your life forever.