The headquarters of the police department - located at 700 Minnesota Avenue - will host the event from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. next Tuesday morning.
Drivers will get a first hand look at texting and other distracting behaviors can lead to tragedy while on the road.
More from a news release:
Come to the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department Headquarters, at 700 Minnesota Ave. on Tuesday, June 19th from 0900-1000 hours to experience firsthand how much is on the line when you text; talk on the phone or engage in other distracting behaviors while driving.
With the help of a distracted driving simulator, members of the media and public, can experience (in a safe environment) the hazards associated with distracted driving in everyday situations.
See what happens to your diving focus when your phone rings at the same time a child chases a ball that has rolled through traffic; experience your compromised response time in severe weather when you're reading a text, notice how long it takes to see the pedestrian crossing the road when you're checking for emails.
Distracted driving is any activity that could divert a person's attention away from the primary task of driving. All distractions endanger driver, passenger, and bystander safety.
And it's a serious problem: In 2010, 3,092 people were killed in crashes involving a distracted driver and an estimated additional 416,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving a distracted driver. It's especially common among young people: 40% of all American teens say they have been in a car when the driver used a cell phone in a way that put people in danger.
Please come experience the distracted driving simulator and see for yourself what happens when you're mind isn't fully on the road ahead.
The event is presented by The Kansas City, Kansas Police Department and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, with support from the Iowa Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau.
