texting worse than drinking?

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Many of us are guilty of sneaking peeks at our cell phones while driving.  I will be the first to admit it.  I can’t ever seem to keep my hands off my phone, even if it’s just to make sure it’s still alive.  (Just checked right now – vital signs: a few bars, plenty of battery, okay great, someone should call soon!)  But maybe we need better control.  Remember some of these texting while driving (TWD) accidents in the headlines?  Worst domestic train accident in 15 years killing 25 people. Bus driver caught on film texting while smashing into car in front of him on the freeway. In this Today Show video, we learn about 17 year old Amanda Martin, who lost her life to TWD in 2007.   So then maybe it doesn’t come as such a surprise that TWD can be more dangerous than drinking and driving.  Car and Driver found that it takes significantly longer for a sober person texting to react than a legally drunk person (see image below).  With 66% of 18-24 year olds TWD and thousands of accidents caused by this each year, it’s no wonder more and more states are banning TWD – 14 states total as of last week.  Check here to get the full list of states.  The next time I see myself reaching for my phone while driving, I am going to say to myself (out loud if I have to) “leave your phone alone!”  It’s short, it rhymes, and it will help save a life.