‘Stop The Texts, Stop The Wrecks’

HARTFORD — Attorney General George Jepsen has announced that Connecticut is participating in a nationwide advertising campaign being launched today aimed at reducing the number of deaths from distracted driving by educating young adult drivers about the dangers of texting while driving.

“Laws prohibiting texting while driving are not enough. We need to change the culture, starting with the age group most proficient with new technology,” said Mr Jepsen. “They have the power to save lives by focusing on the road and not their cell phones while driving. Stop the texts to stop the wrecks.”

The national public service advertising campaign is sponsored by the state Attorneys General and Consumer Protection agencies, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Ad Council. It includes TV, radio, outdoor and digital public service announcements and new postings on the social media networks Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

The NHTSA reports that distracted driving is the number one killer of American teens: 16 percent of all drivers younger than 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported to have been distracted while driving. According to a national survey conducted by The Ad Council, 82 percent of young adult drivers (ages 16-24) have read a standard text message while driving.

“Distracted driving is dangerous, and tragically, teen drivers are the most at risk of being involved in a fatal distracted driving crash,” said US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

The new public service ads were created pro bono by New York advertising agency The Concept Farm. The ads show teens and adults that when they text and drive, they are not multitasking, but essentially driving blind. By taking their eyes off the road, even for a few seconds, drivers are making the road less safe for themselves, their passengers and other drivers. All of the ads direct audiences to stoptextstopwrecks.org, a new campaign website where teens and young adults can learn about the impact of texting while driving as well as tips to curb the behavior. The website also has an area where individuals can post, and share on Facebook what they are doing to stop texting and driving.     

The campaign is the final portion of a youth driving safety program began in 2006 by the State Attorneys General and The Ad Council with funds from a nationwide settlement with Ford Motor Co. The Ad Council and NHTSA have worked together on consumer safety advertising campaigns for more than 25 years.