Weekly Dish Blog - Put the Phone Down!

Yes, we mean you. As it turns out, all those teenagers at whom we shake our heads while they text and drive are not the only ones guilty of this dangerous act. According to a 2010 study, 81% of the United States population admits to resorting to texting while driving a vehicle. Driving statistics, compiled by Pew Research Center, revealed that 47 percent of adults resort to texting as compared to 34 percent of teenagers. This is scary to hear as a parent, even if you are guilty, because you never know when the person doing the texting is the one in charge of your child’s carpool.

If that isn’t enough to scare you, think about the comparative study done by a United States car magazine that revealed that texting while driving is even more dangerous than drunk driving. So, as we said before, put the phone down. There are other people on the road and as everyone knows, driving with your kids in the car is distracting enough without adding the phone to the lineup.

If you need something to cut you off so you won’t be tempted to text, check out these apps for your cell phone. Using your phone’s GPS, these apps can tell when you are driving and automatically block calls and texts.

DriveSafe.ly – This app reads your text messages, allows voice response, and has customizable auto-replies. Download it free at drivesafe.ly/download.

ZoomSafer – This app will let you block incoming calls, texts and e-mails, sending a message back to the person that you are driving and will get back to them when you can. You can customize it to allow certain callers – like your child – to get through. This app is available for Blackberry and Windows Mobile for $2.95 a month.

iZUP – This one will automatically send all calls to voicemail and holds all text messages until you stop. It is available for Blackberry and Android for $49.95 a year or $4.95 a month.

FEED US