Mone Insurance has brought the “Distractibility 101 Tour” to Martha’s Vineyard this week. According to a press release, Distractibility 101 is an interactive program developed by the Arbella Insurance Foundation to teach new drivers the dangers of distracted driving. The campaign features a 36-foot-long, neon yellow mobile classroom outfitted with high-tech driving simulators designed to give new drivers the chance to experience the perils of distracted driving, including texting while driving.
According to a 2014 report from the Centers for Disease Control, an estimated nine people die and 1,060 are hurt each day as a result of distracted driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that 71 percent of teens and young adults say they have composed and sent text messages while driving, and 78 percent of teens and young adults say they have read a text while driving. Sending or receiving a text message takes a driver’s eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds — the equivalent of driving the length of an entire football field at 55 mph, blind. According to the Governors Highway Safety Association, teens represented the largest proportion of drivers who were distracted at the time of a fatal crash, and 57 percent of those killed were the teen drivers themselves.
“Since 2010, Distractology 101 has played a vital role in educating our communities’ young drivers on the dangers of distracted driving,” said Bob Mone of Mone Insurance Agency. “Though laws are now in place against distracted driving, education is the real key to making sure drivers make smart decisions behind the wheel. We at Mone Insurance are proud once again to host the Distractology tour for our teens on Martha’s Vineyard. The tour was first brought to our high school during prom week in 2011, and was met with rave reviews.”
The Distractology driving simulator, based on Arbella-funded research conducted with the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, will travel to various communities in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island during the 2014-15 school year, offering 45 minutes of simulated distracted driving to each participant.
To sign up for the free Distractology 101 training, which runs through Saturday, May 30, contact Neal Maciel at MVRHS, or Michelle Long at Mone Insurance Agency at 508-693-9111.