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Red Mango, Texting Awareness Foundation team up for driver safety

June 20, 2012

Texting and driving is the No. 1 killer of teens in America, and Memorial Day through Labor Day are known as the 100 deadliest days of summer from critical injuries and deaths related to texting and driving.

To make summer safe again, the Texting Awareness Foundation (TAF) is launching a “Safe Summer Driving Campaign” that will kick off with a high-impact billboard in Times Square, sponsored by Red Mango. The campaign will run June through September. (View the Times Square billboard here.)  Both the Texting Awareness Foundation and Red Mango are committed to increasing public awareness about the deadly dangers of texting and driving. 

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, text messaging creates a crash risk 23 times higher than driving under normal circumstances.  To illustrate the proliferation of text messaging, the International Association for the Wireless Telecommunications Industry reported that more than 196 billion text messages were sent or received in the U.S in the month of July 2011 – an increase of more than 50 percent from the same time in 2009.  

"I know that it's difficult for many of us to do, including me, but texting and driving is very dangerous and is now the No. 1 killer of teens in the United States,” said Dan Kim, founder and chief concept officer of Red Mango. “I don't think many people know that disturbing fact, which is why we are honored to help the Texting Awareness Foundation deliver this life-saving message in one of the busiest centers of the world, New York City's Times Square."

The Safe Summer Driving Campaign seeks to reach young people across the country with public service announcements, partnerships with other safe driving organizations, in-school educational programs, bumper stickers, reminder signs near exit areas in parking lots and on roads, and more. The foundation also is asking the public to add a tagline to social media feeds: “If you want to survive, don't text and drive!” to help remind the public to stop engaging in this activity.  

“We are committed to saving lives through effective advocacy and education to help people understand the catastrophic consequences that result from this dangerous activity," said Rocco Panetta, executive director of the Texting Awareness Foundation.  "Texting and driving devastates families and entire communities – we are determined to put an end to this senseless act.”

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