Texting still major problem despite safety efforts
A new study shows parents play an influential role in teen driving behavior.
"Essentially, as soon as that car seat turns around and that child is facing forward and can see what the driver is doing, they're picking up things, they're learning things," says Toyota Safety Engineer Tina Sayer.
The research conducted by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute and Toyota’s Collaborative Safety Research Center also found that texting while driving remains commonplace among teens, despite ongoing, nationwide efforts to educate drivers.
"About 1% of parents said their teen texted while driving," says Dr. Ray Bingham at UMTRI. "But actually, it was about 26% of teens who said they texted almost every time they drove."
Motor vehicle crashes remain the leading cause of death for U.S. teens. In 2010 alone, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said 223 teen drivers in Texas were involved in a crash that had at least one fatality.
