To save lives and educate residents, Glendora Police, the California Office of Traffic Safety and 200 other agencies across the state have been increasing education and enforcement efforts regarding distracted driving.
Authorities will conduct local media interviews, visit schools, and conduct traffic safety presentations to educate drivers on the dangers of distracted driving. Authorities spent April 1 conducting high visibility enforcement patrols with a second enforcement day coming April 15, authorities said in a written statement.
April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, with California Teen Safe Driving Week taking place during the first week.
The OTS is using the message “Silence the Distraction” in public service announcements to get the message out to drivers to turn off their phones and eliminate the urge to use them while driving, authorities said.
“Driving takes one’s full attention and any distraction can have dangerous consequences,” said Glendora Police Chief Tim Staab. “In the average time it takes to check a text message – less than 5 seconds – a car traveling 60 mph will travel more than the length of a football field.”
Authorities said that even though distracted driving can take on many forms and affects all road users, teen drivers are at greater risk, which is why educating these young drivers that their number one killer—reckless and distracted driving—is preventable.
“Each of us must drive responsibly, keeping full attention to the task at hand – DRIVING. If you have teenagers in your family who are driving, make sure they understand the laws and what their responsibilities are as well,” Staab said. “The goal with this month-long campaign is to change the behavior of all drivers. That change begins with education.”
