Cell phone distraction causes one in four US car crashes

This article in the Christian Science Monitor discussed the number of automobile accidents due to distracted drivers looking at their cellular phones. The article also covers the formation of a new anti distraction campaign called FocusDriven. The article claims that over 1.6 million automobile accidents a year are a direct result of drivers using cell phones behind the wheel. David Strayer who runs the applied cognition lab at the university of Utah concluded from his studies that people talking on cellphones are 4 times as likely to be involved in an accident, and that people texting are 8 times as likely.
The group, FocusDriven, wants to raise awareness of the danger of operating a motorvehicle while using a cell phone. The groups president and CEO, Jane Froetscher, wants the group to be along the same lines as MADD, by appealing to peoples emotions to get them to get the right of cell phone use restricted while behind the wheel. All 5 board members and the head of the organization have lost dear ones to distracted drivers.