The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is the federal body tasked with automotive safety, as its name implies — and sometimes, you just have to take your message straight to the people.
A US government agency is scolding people on Twitter for texting and driving
If you look at NHTSA’s Twitter feed right now, you’ll find that it’s just a non-stop stream of burns aimed at people who admit — sometimes gleefully — that they text and drive:
It's a habit worth breaking, @Ethan_WMASS. Do yourself and everyone else on the road a favor - put the phone down and #justdrive.
— NHTSA (@NHTSAgov) April 21, 2016
Yeah you reeaalllyy do, @Azur_Buljic. Stay off your phone and #justdrive. No text is worth a wreck or even a life.
— NHTSA (@NHTSAgov) April 21, 2016
Nobody's "good" at texting & driving, @bequitaQ. Do yourself and other drivers a favor and get off your phone. It's not worth it #justdrive
— NHTSA (@NHTSAgov) April 22, 2016
For what it’s worth, NHTSA is right: countless studies have linked texting in the driver’s seat with higher accident rates, and Werner Herzog himself has made a film about it.
As federal social media campaigns go, this is pretty clever. Getting shamed online by a government agency is far harsher than getting shamed by a friend — but it’s still a lot better than getting killed over an email.
It’s still not a good idea to let your Tesla drive itself
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