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It's not only teenagers who are at-risk in an automobile. According to a recent poll from the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 47 percent of adults admit to text messaging while driving.
This statistic is particularly disturbing in light of recent reports that the crash risk associated with texting is significantly higher than driving while intoxicated. Additionally, the risk of an accident happening while texting is eight times higher than that of an undistracted driver operating a vehicle. Compare that with this fact: driving when intoxicated at a .08 blood alcohol level (the legal limit) is associated with a crash risk four timers higher than baseline (http://www.nhtsa.gov).
The Pew foundation report also states the following:
* Seventy five percent of drivers who own a cell phone report using it while driving. This compares with a rate of 52 percent for teen drivers ages 16-17.
* More than 40 percent of drivers report they have been passengers in a vehicle where the driver's use of a cell phone put them or others in danger.
* Seventeen percent of adults who own a cell phone have, while walking, bumped into a person or object because they were distracted.
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