Eye Opening Stat

Rob · Post by **Rob** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 3:16 am

Distracted drivers while texting remain, by far, my major riding safety concern.

This article on MSN was an eye opener to me and and a reminder of why we all need to stay alert and drive defensively,

"31 percent of US drivers are morons who insist on texting and driving"

You can read the rest of the article Here

Rob

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 5:13 am

especially important stat for all the scooter riders i see lately who just cannot ride. its bad enough all these distracted drivers, but when i see 35mph in a 45mph zone in the fast lane, a person riding in traffic at the curb like a bicycle rather then splitting lanes properly and safely, and two 50cc's drifting in and out of the center lane without a care of traffic around them....well, i tend to worry for them. this was all witnessed on the same afternoon in a three hour span

i understand some of these are new riders. but even as a new rider Safe Riding 101 should already have been studied and passed. so while its easy to call distracted drivers morons its just as easy to call fellow riders the same when they treat a scooter like a toy rather then giving it the respect it needs to be operated safely

i don't like to see people texting while driving and i hope i am never rear ended by one. but they are usually in front of me, drifting, and driving too slow. i just go around 'em. are they dangerous to me? no more then any other cage on the road tbh. and i think that is important to remember

we need to stay alert and ride defensively regardless. and we need to ride confidently and within the rules and conditions of the road. too many times lately when witnessing people riding scooters, that is not the case :/

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 5:17 am

on another note, i think we're just jelly WE can't text and ride!

damn cagers. they have ALL the fun

neotrotsky · Post by **neotrotsky** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 5:26 am

JHScoot wrote:on another note, i think we're just jelly WE can't text and ride!

damn cagers. they have ALL the fun

You just need a phone with better voice recognition software and an armband

skully93 · Post by **skully93** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 2:50 pm

nice on all points.

My boss really wanted me to get a bluetooth system to answer the phone while riding. I told him they don't pay 150k a year in hazard pay, so no...

Swordsman · Post by **Swordsman** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 4:35 pm

Does anyone else think it's a bit strange that this data about driving habits is coming from the CDC? I mean, don't they have better things to be studying, like swine flu or ebola or something???

~SM

Witch · Post by **Witch** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 4:44 pm

Around here, you have to worry about the policemen, too. I frequently see them messing around on their in-car laptops while driving around.

Here, where using a cel phone while driving is illegal...

neotrotsky · Post by **neotrotsky** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 4:59 pm

Swordsman wrote:Does anyone else think it's a bit strange that this data about driving habits is coming from the CDC? I mean, don't they have better things to be studying, like swine flu or ebola or something???

~SM

Actually this falls under their realm, since more people die from distracted driving than swine flu and Ebola combined. And, their task is to eliminate health hazards by creating proactive solutions. Swine flu and Ebola have effective control solutions already

Swordsman · Post by **Swordsman** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 5:03 pm

neotrotsky wrote: Actually this falls under their realm, since more people die from distracted driving than swine flu and Ebola combined. And, their task is to eliminate health hazards by creating proactive solutions.

Ah, I had no idea it was "health hazards" in general. Their department name is kinda specific, so I just assumed that was their entire scope.

~SM

neotrotsky · Post by **neotrotsky** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 5:13 pm

Yep... they cover all epidemic and pandemic events that pose a risk to US citizens... even zombies.

http://www.cdc.gov/phpr/zombies.htm

ravenlore · Post by **ravenlore** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 5:39 pm

neotrotsky wrote:Yep... they cover all epidemic and pandemic events that pose a risk to US citizens... even zombies.

http://www.cdc.gov/phpr/zombies.htm

I love hitting that page every now and then. Never gets old.

Stormswift · Post by **Stormswift** » Wed Mar 20, 2013 1:30 am

Swordsman wrote:Does anyone else think it's a bit strange that this data about driving habits is coming from the CDC? I mean, don't they have better things to be studying, like swine flu or ebola or something???

~SM

Hmmmm....CDC..Would those be the same folks who issue Zombie survival guide?