Reduce fatalities and serious injuries by identifying and implementing education and awareness strategies to reduce distracted driving.
Strategy
Countermeasures
Countermeasures for strategy 1 were identified in the following categories.
Education—dangers
*Educate the public with age-specific messages (pre-teen to adult) about the dangers of distracted driving through the media, schools, car dealers, community events, and employers, and test the effectiveness of using personal stories/tragedies to impact teens and middle school students’ behaviors.
* Action Plan
Education—apps
Educate the public with age-specific messages about tools to encourage distraction-free driving (apps, technology, and programs) through outreach programs. Examples are informing adults/parents about tools they can use to limit teen cell phone use while driving, and educating consumers about apps that will disable phones while in a vehicle.
Education—judiciary
Inform members of the judiciary branch about tools that limit cell phone use and training programs such as Impact Texas Teen Drivers and the Texas Municipal Police Association/TxDOT adult course. Encourage voluntary participation in these courses.
Teen involvement
Consider using teens to conduct a public survey to determine the level of support for laws restricting distracted driving.
Teen education—laws
Inform teen drivers about cell phone, texting, and other restrictions under the Texas graduated driver licensing law.
Teen education—video
Continue to implement Impact Texas Teen Drivers, an informational tool (a two-hour video) designed to educate teens about distracted-driving dangers.