Keep the roads free of phones

Campaigns by Transport Canada, Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators and the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration are reminding motorists to stop using handheld devices — such as cell phones — while driving.

May 11 marks the launch of the Decade of Road Safety, a campaign by the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration. The campaign aims to develop the safety of vehicles, enhance the behaviour of road users, improve post-crash care and more. The UN has invited governments, international agencies, civil society organizations and other stakeholders to participate in this effort to make the world's roads a little safer.

The Canadian Global Road Safety Committee has declared 2011 to be the Year of Road Safety. Transport Canada will be undertaking the initiative and aims to raise awareness about road safety, in turn helping to lower road collision, death and injury rates. To do this, Transport Canada and other road safety organizations are taking action to improve road safety.

The Canadian Global Road Safety Committee launched the Leave the Phone Alone campaign on November 17, 2010, to coincide with the third annual National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims. Leave the Phone Alone is a pledge system where drivers take a stand against using devices while driving by using social media, stickers and pledge forms.

Statistics show that in 80 per cent of crashes studied, the driver looked away from the road for just three seconds before the crash. Another study found that drivers who text have a crash rate 23 times greater than when they are not texting.

It is illegal to use handheld devices while driving, so leave them alone when you're behind the wheel.

For more information about the Year of Road Safety, visit tinyurl.com/roadsafetyyear. For more information about the Decade of Road Safety, visit who.int/roadsafety. To take the pledge or to learn more about Leave the Phone Alone, visit leavethephonealone.ca.