Joined by North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper and UNC Charlotte Chancellor Philip L. Dubois, students and other members of the University community will get a realistic look at what can happen when people text while behind the wheel of a car.
AT&T will bring a driving simulator to the Student Union on Wednesday, Sept. 4, where students, faculty and visitors can experience firsthand the dangers of texting while driving as part of the “It Can Wait” campaign launched four years.
UNC Charlotte will become the first North Carolina university to join the movement, according to AT&T. The institution has signed on as a partner alongside North Carolina organizations that include the North Carolina Driver and Traffic Safety Education Association, the N.C. Department of Transportation and the Carolina Panthers.
The driving simulator – a video game setup that includes a chair, steering wheel, pedals and a monitor – will be in the Student Union Rotunda from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Participants will be able to experience a 3D driving simulation involving a city of about eight blocks and realistic texts that appear on a smart phone accompanying the chair.
Members of the UNC Charlotte community who try the simulator will experience a “ride” that lasts from 30 seconds to four minutes depending on how well the driver is able to maneuver around the obstacles while texting.
According to the National Safety Council, texting drivers cause more than 100,000 automobile crashes resulting in death or serious injury every year - drivers who text or email behind the wheel are 23 times more likely to be in a crash than those who concentrate on the road.