Car accidents are regular occurrences throughout the Pittsburgh area. There are multiple reasons for this, and those reasons often vary depending on the age of the person behind the wheel at the time of the crash. Teen drivers in particular, are often tied to the practice of distracted driving. The distraction of the day is currently texting.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted a survey last year geared toward teen drivers. One of the things it uncovered is that out of the seniors who responded, over half, or 56 percent, admitted to having texted while driving within the previous month. Students in the grade below them fared a bit better, at 43 percent.

While the numbers may be surprising to some, consider this-these days most teens use texting as a primary way to communicate with friends. On an average, the typical teen may send and receive a total of 100 messages each day. These messages are sent from a variety of locations including moving vehicles.

It is worth noting that the behavior continues despite the fact that currently 39 states have laws in place that make it illegal to text while driving.

Recognizing that this is an issue nationwide, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood recently announced pilots being conducted in two states designed to address the matter. Though specifics were not provided, it is probably fair to assume that if the pilots go well, additional states will be added to the program. This is important because it does not appear that the technologies that make things like texting possible are going anywhere. Whether it will have the desired effect, remains to be seen.

Source: USA Today, "CDC: Older teens often text while behind the wheel," Associated Press. June 7, 2012