Over the past couple of months, AT&T has ramped up its campaign to prevent texting while driving. Individuals who send text messages are 23 times more likely to be in a car crash as stated by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute Research Report.
The latest edition to AT&T’s campaign to prevent texting while driving is the new “Drive Mode” application. This free application helps to “curb the urge to text and drive” by automatically sending a reply to incoming text messages. The reply message informs the sender that you are driving and cannot respond to the incoming text message, similar to an “out of office” email.
In addition, the “Drive Mode” application allows you to set-up auto-replies to emails and phone calls, set-up an “allow list” of five contact numbers to reach help or family members, and dial 911 from your home screen.
The new application was the brainchild of AT&T employee Shavonne Jones who was inspired to create the application due to a dream she had about deactivating her phone before driving. Shavonne lost her close friend of 32 years after his car was hit by a young lady who was texting while driving. Shavonne’s wish is for the application to help save lives. “If this idea can help a mother, father, friend, aunt, that’s what I want it do”, Shavonne states in the AT&T video regarding the new application.
The new application is free and available for BlackBerry users at AT&T’s AppCenter and BlackBerry App World. It is currently free due to subsidies from the Remember Alex Brown Foundation, a foundation created by parents who daughter was killed while texting and driving.
For more information regarding AT&T’s “Drive Mode” Application and “It Can’t Wait” Don’t Text While Driving Campaign, please visit: http://www.att.com/gen/press-room?pid=2964
Great idea, but why is it not available for iPhone?
or any phone?
I believe in the last part of this article, you mean AT&T’s “It CAN Wait” Campaign. don’t give the wrong idea hahah.