It Can Wait campaign makes stop in Reedsville

February 22, 2018

By David Nordby The Brillion News

REEDSVILLE – Students at Reedsville High School heard about the dangers of smartphone use while driving at last week’s It Can Wait presentation.

The It Can Wait campaign is a national program put together by AT&T and last week, they teamed up with AAA, the Wisconsin State Patrol, the high school, Chief Jo Ann Mignon and Reedsville Officer Joe Tisler to speak with students.

Robyn Gruner of AT&T Wisconsin says it’s important to get the message to the younger generation because of how much they use their devices and how inexperienced they are behind the wheel.

“They’re definitely more and more connected to their devices, but I also think that’s because there’s so many more apps and features and so much more online that they’re accessing,” Gruner said. “That’s really the way they communicate.”

The state of today’s communication that runs through cell phones has changed the It Can Wait campaign, even though it’s only seven years old. They showed a documentary called “The Last Text” that showed raw, real stories about people whose lives were altered by texting and driving.

Now, the campaign is talking about more than texting. AT&T sees that cell phone users are conducting online searches, surfing social media sites and checking emails too.

“We’ve seen it growing a lot in the last few years and that’s why we’ve changed the [campaign] to include more than just texting,” Gruner said.

The event also includes AAA’s distracted driving simulator. Three volunteer students got behind the wheel, pulled out their cell phones and met crashes. While the AT&T representatives in attendance said it is a way for students to have a few laughs, the real thing is serious business.

According to AT&T, 95 percent of drivers disapprove of distracted driving, but 71 percent still engage in smartphone activities while driving.

Please see the complete story in the February 22, 2018 edition of The Brillion News.