“April showers bring May flowers” is the popular phrase that people think of when April finally comes. Although April may be known for its rainy days, April is also the month for raising awareness on different causes that effect society.
Recently April has been announced as “Distracted Driving Awareness Month.”
Distracted driving can be anything from texting while driving, paying more attention to the radio dial, or even stretching to see that terrible car accident on the side of the road instead of paying attention to the road.
It only takes one second of being distracting to cause accidents both fatal and critical.
Sprint has joined in on creating awareness on the problem by creating an application for its customers called “Drive First: Safe Driving Solution.”
“As a parent, I am proud that Sprint is offering distracted driving solutions like “Sprint Drive First,” which effectively helps wireless customers manage their usage, stay safe behind the wheel and focus their attention on driving,” CEO Dan Hesse said when discussing the new application in honor of Distracted Driving Awareness Month.
This application will block text message alerts that might distract a driver but it will also screen and lock the driver’s incoming calls and direct those calls to voicemail.
For more information on Sprint’s “Drive First” application, visit spring.com/focusondriving.
Phi Sigma Pi has helped to inform WCU’s campus on distracted driving and the harmful consequences it can have.
On Saturday, April 9 the Alpha Epsilon chapter of Phi Sigma Pi, hosted a benefit concert in honor of Casey Feldman. Feldman, a student at Fordham University was struck and killed by a vehicle while crossing a pedestrian crosswalk in Ocean City, N.J.
The driver behind that vehicle was distracted.
“Casey died because a driver took his eyes off the road for just a few seconds. And after it happened, I knew I could easily have been that driver. I had driven while distracted many times. And it took losing Casey for me to realize how lucky I was not to have killed another family’s child, spouse, parent, or friend,” Joel Feldman, Casey’s father said.
“I lost Casey, and I changed the way I drive. But most people don’t lose loved ones to distracted driving. They don’t realize the chances they take when they multi-task behind the wheel,” Feldman said.
There are many ways to stay focused on driving and not get distracted.
However, the best advice is to just leave the cell phones, the radio, and other devices alone and to keep your eyes on the road ahead at all times.
Angela Thomas is a fourth year student majoring in English and with a minor in web technology. She can be reached at AT683005@wcupa.edu.