It seems like so many motorists on the road these days do everything inside their vehicles except drive safely.
A trio of Oxford High School students is trying to raise public awareness about the dangers of distracted driving with their ‘Shut Up & Drive? campaign.
‘Every 17 seconds someone is in an accident due to distracted driving,? said senior Felicia Carmany. ‘It affects everyone that drives.?
Carmany, along with fellow seniors Lauren Dial and Kaitlyn Landis, are hoping to change that statistic for the better with their public relations project for DECA, a student marketing and business organization.
When thinking about driving distractions cell phone conversations and text messaging are probably the first ones that pop into most people’s heads, but there are plenty of others including eating, applying makeup, shaving, using laptop computers and many more.
‘There’s so many different things people are distracted by that they don’t even realize,? Carmany said. ‘How many times have you seen a woman reading a book in traffic??
Everyday in the United States, there are 4,300 crashes caused by driving distractions.
The ladies are hoping to alert more people of this danger through a full-media campaign (print, billboard, radio and TV) and by working closely with state Sen. Mike Bishop (R-Rochester).
Last week, the ladies met with a representative from Bishop’s staff to discuss the idea of holding a big rally in Lansing at some point and having the senate majority leader participate in a video-taped panel discussion on distracted driving.
Carmany, Dial and Landis are also planning to create some public service announcements for Oxford Community Television (Channel 19) and possibly radio stations.
They would like people who have been personally affected in some way by distracted driving to participate in these PSAs to make them more effective. Those interested in helping can contact Landis at (248) 701-6494.
At OHS, the ladies are planning to hold a school-wide assembly involving an interactive driving simulator supplied by Takata, Inc., an Auburn Hills-based manufacturer of automotive safety equipment such as seat belts, air bags and other assorted devices.
Using Nintendo Wii technology, the simulator puts students in situations where they must avoid distractions, recognize hazardous situations and make sound judgements while driving.
‘We didn’t want it to be boring because it’s a hard topic to talk about with 16 and 17-year-olds,? Carmany said. ‘We thought with the simulator it would be a little bit more fun.?
Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death among high-school-age students.
To help raise funds for their PR campaign, the ladies are selling T-shirts for $7 each.
The front of the white shirt reads ‘Shut Up & Drive? while the backs reminds people ‘You’re the Hero . . . Be the Difference,? a slogan from the Canada-based National Students Against Impaired and Distracted Driving.
Other fund-raisers and activities are in the works.
‘We have a lot more to come during the year,? Carmany said. ‘The goal is to reach the largest amount of people we can.?