Addabbo Hosts Interactive Distracted Driving Event in Acknowledging April As Distracted Driving Awareness Month

In commemoration of April as National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, Senator Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr. hosted an interactive and educational safety event on April 10, 2024, at Richmond Hill High School. It allowed participants to try a crash simulator, drunk goggles, the seatbelt convincer (which simulates a 5-mph crash) and the rollover convincer which demonstrates what happens to passengers who are not wearing a seatbelt in a rollover crash. 

“My office and I decided to refrain from offering a class in what not to do, but rather allowed people to truly experience impairment and distraction using the senses of touch, sight, and sound,” Senator Addabbo said. “In doing so, hopefully it will get people to think twice about being pre-occupied behind the wheel.”

In 2022 there were 3,308 people killed and an estimated additional 289,310 people injured in motor vehicle traffic crashes involving distracted drivers, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Although the number of fatalities fell by 6% from 2021 to 2022 (3,521 to 3,308), it remains a significant problem, representing 8% of all traffic fatalities The economic cost resulting from distracted-driving traffic crashes is estimated to be $98 billion, which such costs as: lost productivity; workplace costs; medical costs; and emergency medical services.

Many agencies and businesses participated in the event such as: NYC Police Department Transportation Bureau, NYC Department of Transportation (DOT), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Governor's Traffic Safety Committee (GTSC), New York State Police, Flavors Driving School, and Jenoptik USA, an international company in the field of automated safety and enforcement, which is piloting a camera program to catch distracted drivers in the act. It has already begun trial usage in Australia.

Senator Addabbo thanked all the event partners including Richmond Hill High School for allowing for the use of their space and expressed additional gratitude to Flavors Driving School for constructing a distracted driving crash simulator especially for this event. 

Videos from the event can be viewed on Senator Addabbo’s YouTube Channel at the links below:

Constituents try the Seatbelt Convincer at Senator Addabbo's Distracted Driving Event

https://youtu.be/EyogQ9kC6Wg

Constituents Try Drunk Goggles at Senator Addabbo's Distracted Driving Event

https://youtu.be/3knO--X5rVk