Distracted While Driving Simulator Stops By MSU

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STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) –  According to the National Highway Safety Commisson 16% of all fatal car crashes and 21% of all injury causing car crashes are due to distracted driving. MSU had a stimulation today that showed the students not to take driving so lightly.
Watch out for that tree, stay in your lane, keep your eyes on the road! Though this car isn’t really on the road, these goggles simulate what it’s like to be driving while distracted.

“The students can either choose from texting and driving or drinking and driving and the simulator goes through, it’s a real car, they do the gas, breaks, steering, just like a real car and they can see what the impact might be if they choose to participate in those activities in real life,” said organizer Juleigh Baker.

Students lined up to try out the virtual experience, but what seemed like a fun game showed them real results. How fast or slow they were going on the highway while texting and driving.

“For the texting and driving we just click a course and then tell them to put on the goggles and drive around, tell them to text somebody, see how good or bad they do, most of them do pretty bad,” said Technical Coordinator Aaron Snyder.

It’s a reality people are faced with everyday and hopefully the simulator will have people thinking before they drive.

“It was still eye opening just the fact that I ran off the road several times and one time I looked up, I was going around a curve that was off a cliff on the other end and there was a car coming around that I didn’t see that I almost ran into,” said student Bree Pettigo.

Seeing the results of the system had some surprised but in the end will it really have students thinking twice.

“There’s still you know there’s going to be offenders, I’m probably gonna do it every now and then but it will definitely bring my attention more to it,” added Bree.