1. For more information, contact:
Sarah Briggs, Public Affairs
AT&T Ohio
614-223-7641
sarah.briggs@att.com
AAA Ohio Auto Club, City Year and AT&T Urge Linden-McKinley STEM
Academy Students to Pledge They’ll Never Text and Drive at
www.ItCanWait.com
Assembly Part of Series of Events Hosted by AT&T
COLUMBUS,Ohio (Nov. 21, 2013) —AAA Ohio Auto Club, City Year and AT&T teamed up today with
the Ohio State Highway Patrol to highlight the dangers of texting and driving and urge more than 100
students from Linden-McKinley STEM Academy to pledge they will never text and drive.
During a school assembly, students had the chance to hear about the dangers of texting while driving
and to watch the AT&T documentary “The Last Text”which shares real stories about lives altered or
ended by the decision to text and drive.
AT&T first launched the It Can Wait®campaign in 2009 to educate the public about the dangers of
texting while driving and to encourage consumers to take a pledge that they will never text and drive at
www.ItCanWait.com.
“Distracted driving is an epidemic on our roadways, and we need people all across Ohio to take action
in their communities to help put a stop to it," said Ohio Department of Public Safety Director John Born.
"Texting while driving is the most dangerous form of distracted driving, and AAA remains committed to
putting an end to this dangerous practice," said Kimberly Schwind, Public Relations Manager, AAA
Ohio Auto Club. "It's great to see so many organizations committed to fighting this critical traffic safety
issue."
“Studies show teens continue to text and drive, even though they know it’s dangerous and against the
law,” said David Kandel, External Affairs Director, AT&T. “We’re challenging all drivers, especially our
teens, to take the pledge to never text and drive and to make it a lifelong commitment.”
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2. The It Can Wait®movement is making a difference. One in three people who have seen the texting
while driving message say they’ve changed their driving habits, and the campaign has inspired more
than 3.5 million pledges to never text and drive. The recently launched “From One Second to the
Next”documentary has also received more than 2 million views since its Hollywood premiere on August
8.
Texting while driving causes more than 100,000 car crashes on American roadways each year,
according to the National Safety Council1. The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute has found that
drivers who send text messages while driving are much more likely to be in a crash.
Teens are particularly at risk. While 97% of teens say they know texting while driving is dangerous,
75% say the practice is still “common” among their friends, according to an AT&T survey2.
In Ohio, it is illegal for drivers under age 18 to write, send or read text-based messages or even talk on
the phone while driving due to a texting ban which took effect on March 1. The penalty is a $150 fine
and a 60-day license suspension, and repeat offenders could face a $300 fine and a 1-year license
suspension. For adults the texting ban is a secondary offense. Ohio is among 41 states that ban text
messaging by all drivers.
For more information on the It Can Wait® campaign, please visit:ItCanWait.com.
*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc
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National Safety Council www.nsc.org
Survey conducted by Beck Research on behalf of AT&T http://www.att.com/Common/about_us/txting_driving/att_teen_survey_executive.pdf.
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