Hovan 1

Aubrey Hovan

Mrs. Bakomihalis

English 3

August 9, 2022

07.08

Distracted driving is far more common than many think. Texting, playing a game, or any

other form of looking at your screen while driving falls under the category of distracted driving.

Many people are convinced that an accident caused by distracted driving will never happen to

them, and don’t even bother to take a look at the statistics and stories of people who crashed.

Oftentimes people will start reading or listening to an article and instantly get bored, thus not

finishing the story and continuing to participate in distracted driving. Though there is no way to

completely prevent distracted driving, public service announcements are a great way to explain

the risks, effects, and ways to reduce it to the greatest number of people possible.

Public service Announcements (PSA’s) can help to decrease the number of distracted

driving accidents by telling people about the terrible effects which distracted driving leads to and

following with the best ways to prevent it altogether. Distracted driving comes in the form of

Texting, talking on the phone, eating, drinking, talking to passengers, grooming, looking up

directions on a GPS device, looking at a map, adjusting the radio, AC, etc (“Distracted

Driving”). There are far more distractions than just phones, and drivers need to be aware and

mindful of them to ensure safety. The CDC categorized these distractions into three categories.

Visual (taking your eyes off the road), manual (taking your hands off the wheel), and cognitive
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(taking your mind off driving). These are all things that drivers can benefit from knowing, and

public service announcements can help get that information to them.

One factor of distracted driving that isn’t quite a distraction, is daydreaming. “Texting

and driving receive a lot of attention as one of the most dangerous things a driver can do behind

the wheel. However, a 2018 study conducted by Erie Insurance points to daydreaming as the No.

1 distraction for drivers, with cell phone use in second place” (Daydreaming Is the Leading

Cause of Distracted Driving). Daydreaming about friends, relationships, job stressors, or even

about daydreaming, can all work towards taking attention off the road, and young drivers need to

be educated on this so they are aware of it when it’s happening, and know how to refocus.

Though attempts made to educate people through Public Service Announcements may

not be viewed by the goal amount of people, they still make a huge impact. Teenagers, as well as

adults, may ignore a public service announcement because they are convinced it doesn’t apply to

them or it doesn’t grab their attention, but still, we continue educating as many people as

possible about distracted driving so that there will overall be a decrease in the number of

accidents caused by it. PSAs are extremely important as they help to distribute resources,

evidence, and helpful and important information, as well as ways to limit distractions on the

road.
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Works Cited

“Daydreaming Is the Leading Cause of Distracted Driving.” Drive Safely,

www.idrivesafely.com/defensive-driving/trending/daydreaming-leading-cause-distracted-

driving. Accessed 6 Aug. 2022.

“Distracted Driving Fact Sheet.” Drive Safely, 27 Mar. 2020, www.idrivesafely.com/defensive-

driving/trending/distracted-driving-fact-sheet.

“Distracted Driving | Motor Vehicle Safety | CDC Injury Center.” Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention, CDC, 26 Apr. 2022,

www.cdc.gov/transportationsafety/distracted_driving/index.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A

%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fmotorvehiclesafety%2Fdistracted_driving%2Findex.html.

“U Drive. U Text. U Pay.” U.S. Department of Transportation,

www.nhtsa.gov/campaign/distracted-driving. Accessed 6 Aug. 2022.