A month-long distracted driving awareness campaign kicks off this week that will see police in the Tri-Cities cracking down on those who break the law.
According to an Ipsos-Reid poll conducted for ICBC, B.C. drivers consider texting while driving to be on par with drinking and driving. Distracted driving (using any handheld electronic device), is the third leading cause of fatal car crashes in the province, with an average of 91 deaths annually.
Some tips from ICBC to avoid becoming distracted:
Place calls before you drive - before leaving the parking lot, office or home; otherwise, wait until you get to your destination.
If you must make or receive a call while in your car, pull over to the side of the road once it is safe. (and make sure you're safely off to the side so you're not posing a danger to other vehicles).
Let yourphone pick up your calls and text messages - it's easy and much safer to retrieve your messages at a later time.
If there are passengers in the vehicle, let them make and receive calls and texts for you.
Plan to avoid distraction by turning your mobile phone off or placing it in the trunk of your car so you won't be tempted to talk, email or text when you're on the road.
