1. For more information, contact:
Sarah Briggs, Public Affairs Holly Hollingsworth, Media Relations
Office: 614-223-7641 Office: 614-223-5711
E-mail: sarah.briggs@att.com E-mail: holly.hollingsworth@att.com
AT&T CHALLENGES LOCAL TEENS TO JOIN
“IT CAN WAIT” MOVEMENT TO HALT TEXTING WHILE DRIVING
AT&T Simulator Event at North Olmsted High School Encourages Students
and Faculty to Pledge Not to Text and Drive
CLEVELAND, (May 6, 2013) — Representatives from North Olmsted High School joined AT&T,
North Olmsted Mayor Kevin Kennedy, State Senator Tom Patton, State Representative Nan
Baker, and the Ohio State Highway Patrol today to address a dangerous practice that puts
millions of Americans at risk: texting while driving.
To drive home the message and make our roads and highways safer, AT&T brought a
simulator, allowing students and faculty to experience firsthand the dangers of texting and
driving. The students also heard from the organizations regarding Ohio’s texting ban, House Bill
99, which passed the Ohio General Assembly last year and went into effect in the fall. House
Bill 99 also contained a 6 month grace period which ended on March 1st
.
“Texting and driving is a perilous mix. It endangers your own life and the lives of people you’ve
never even met,” said Senator Tom Patton. “I’m proud to join AT&T’s effort to remind drivers,
especially our teenagers, of the potentially deadly consequences of texting while driving and the
fact that this dangerous practice is now illegal across Ohio.”
“More than 100,000 times each year, an automobile crashes and people are injured or die while
a driver was texting and driving,” said Mayor Kevin Kennedy, citing a statistic from the National
Safety Council1
. “In North Olmsted we continue to educate all drivers about Ohio’s texting ban,
and this event at North Olmsted High School is yet another opportunity to get the message out
that when it comes to texting while driving, It Can Wait.”
“Our goal is to save lives,” AT&T External Affairs Director Kevin Lynch said. “AT&T applauds the
efforts of the Ohio General Assembly – as well as Governor Kasich – on their efforts to pass
and sign into law House Bill 99, the statewide texting while driving ban, which took effect last
fall.”
2. 2
In 2012, 165 organizations, including national nonprofits, commercial businesses, law
enforcement, professional associations and government agencies, as well as many educators,
legislators, and other supporters, helped get out the message and encouraged people to make
a personal pledge not to text and drive. This combined effort, including those of the Federal
Communications Commission, the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Organizations
for Youth Safety, SADD, Big Brothers Big Sisters, RadioShack and CTIA-The Wireless
Association, made a difference. Major highlights include:
Awareness of the It Can Wait message increased 26 percent during the key campaign
period.1
One-in-three people in that period said that texting while driving messages have an
impact on their driving habits.1
More than 1.3 million personal commitments never to text and drive have been made at
ItCanWait.com, through Facebook, text-to-pledge, tweet-to-pledge or at events.
“Texting while driving is the most dangerous form of distracted driving; it takes a driver’s eyes
off the road, hands off the wheel, and mind off the task of driving for an extended period of
time,” said State Representative Nan Baker. “It will take our combined and concerted efforts to
stop the rampant spread of texting behind the wheel.”
In 2013, AT&T is extending its work with existing It Can Wait collaborators and significantly
expanding their ranks. Plans include:
Working with device makers to pre-load no-texting-while-driving technologies and
solutions into handsets, with the goal of making these solutions standard on all AT&T
smartphones.
Engaging cities such as Houston, Texas, and companies including USAA and Walmart
to discuss potential new It Can Wait collaborations.
Making resources – ranging from It Can Wait branded materials, to teaching aids and
sample company policies – available to other organizations for programs they develop.
Launching a year-round texting-while-driving simulator tour targeting more than 380
events nationwide.
3. 3
“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 Colonel John Born, Ohio State Highway
Patrol superintendent.
AT&T, its 240,000 employees and other supporters are calling on all drivers to go to
www.ItCanWait.com to take the no-texting-while-driving pledge, and then share their promise
with others via Twitter (#itcanwait) and Facebook. The pledge is part of the public awareness
campaign aimed directly at stopping the dangerous practice of texting while driving.
1
AT&T TWD - ICW Perceptions Study
*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.
Web Site Links: Related Media Kits:
AT&T News
AT&T It Can Wait
AT&T Facebook
AT&T Puede Esperar
Dangers of Text Messaging and Driving
Related Releases: Related Fact Sheets:
AT&T Calls on Nation's Drivers to Pledge: Never
Text and Drive
Parents Can Rule, Kids Can be Cruel, New
Mobile Phone Study Reveals
43% of Teens Say they Text & Drive; 77% Say
Adults Warn Against Risks; but Text & Drive 'All
the Time'
AT&T Teen Driver Survey - Executive Summary
AT&T Teen Driver Survey - Minority Findings
Infographic: The Dangers of Texting While Driving
Fact Sheet: AT&T's "It Can Wait" Campaign
Video: Texting While Driving Simulator
Video: AT&T Don't Text While Driving Documentary
About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company and one of the most honored
companies in the world. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of
AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that
includes the nation’s largest 4G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed
Internet, voice and cloud-based services. A leader in mobile Internet, AT&T also offers the best wireless
coverage worldwide of any U.S. carrier, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries.
It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse
®
and AT&T │DIRECTV brands. The
company’s suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world.
