Did you know that nationwide in 2015, more than 3,477 people were killed and upward of 391,000 others were injured in crashes involving distracted drivers? Let those numbers sink in for a minute – that’s like having the population of one and a half of the high schools in Fremont die each year, and nearly double the entire population of Fremont being injured in crashes that seemingly could have been avoided.
That’s kind of ridiculous when you really think about it. All for what? A giggle from a friend, relative or coworker who is amused by your social media post?
You personally may not be guilty of using your phone while driving – and we thank you for that – and as such may not think you are part of the problem. But you very well could be and not even know it.
Think about your own driving habits. Do you remember your last drive to and from work or the grocery store? Did you take a look around while driving, see potential hazards and do your part to avoid them? Or did you find yourself getting caught up in the routine drive, enjoying your favorite radio station or thinking about what’s for dinner?
We’ve all done the latter at some point. And sometimes we all need a reminder that operating a motor vehicle is a dangerous task and we all rely on each other to do our part in obeying rules of the road so that everyone gets home safely.
Distracted driving has really become a hot topic in recent years as new laws have been passed in regards to the use of phones while operating a vehicle. But while laws have only been enacted in recent years, it has always been the stance of law enforcement that a driver doing anything but paying attention to the road in front of them is in fact considered a distracted driver.
Up to this point you may have been a distracted driver and everything has ended positively.
But remember: It only takes one.
One text message. One selfie. One emoji.
One brush of the hair. One sip of coffee. One change of the radio station.
One bite of a sandwich. One glance at your passenger. One fleeting thought about the troubles or joys of life.
It only takes one moment to ruin everything when you’re behind the wheel of a vehicle.
Don’t let one of those moments define an entire lifetime.
It only takes one person to make a change. Be that one. Because when it comes down to it, there is only one you and you only get one shot at lifetime. Don’t have it end or get derailed because of one incident of distracted driving.
Distracted driving has become an epidemic, so much so that the month of April has been designated as Distracted Driver Awareness Month. It’s not exactly the kind of month that we look to celebrate, but it is our role as law enforcement to help keep the roads safe. And we here at the Fremont Police Department will be joining other agencies near and far in combating this problem that is plaguing the streets through targeted enforcement and education on various social media platforms such as the Department’s Facebook page and Twitter account – just please don’t view those while driving.
More resources and information about Distracted Driving can be located on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website https://www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/distracted-driving.
Do you have a traffic-related question? Submit your questions via e-mail to [email protected]. Interact with the Police Department @FremontPD on Twitter or facebook.com/FremontPoliceDepartment. To report ongoing traffic concerns, parking violations and/or abandoned vehicles, please contact us via [email protected].
