Distractology Comes To Easthampton
Finck & Perras teams up with Arbella Insurance to help fight distracted driving.
We were proud to bring the state-of-the-art Distractology 101 tour to Easthampton MA. during the week of November 16th to the 20th. Distractology 101 is an interactive program developed by the Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation to teach new drivers the dangers of distracted driving.
Distracted driving is a serious problem with staggering numbers: nearly 6,000 people are killed each year due to multitasking behind the wheel, and people who text while driving are 23 percent more likely to be in a crash or to barely avoid one. Studies have even shown that driving while distracted is equivalent to driving with a blood alcohol level of .08.
The Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation is dedicated to putting an end to this dangerous behavior. How? With a 36-foot-long, neon-yellow mobile classroom outfitted with high-tech driving simulators that give new drivers (usually teenagers) a real-life look at the potentially disastrous effects of distracted driving. It’s an interactive experience designed to create a new generation of safe drivers.
During the driving simulator training, called Distractology 101: A Crash Course on Distracted Driving, teens and other new drivers will face a number of scenarios based on real-world examples that illustrate the dangers of distracted driving and teach participants how to anticipate hidden hazards, react to the road and avoid accidents. Participants are then asked to complete the online portion of the curriculum. At www.DistractU.com, they’ll take a training lesson for reinforcement of what they learned in the classroom and a safe driving pledge in order to complete the training.
We had close to 60 students participate in the program and received great reviews from the students. Comments like "I will always keep my phone on the floor" or "this really showed me how quick looking away can turn into an accident" are some of the reasons we think this was a great success.
