Anti-Texting Campaign Coming to Huntington

A national campaign to discourage texting and driving is coming to high schools in Huntington.

The "It Can Wait"  campaign is a project of several mobile phone companies that want to deliver a message about the hazards of texting while driving; experts say such behavior is a factor in more than 100,000 motor vehicles crashes each year.

At noon Friday, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone, Suffolk County Legis. Dr. William Spencer, D-Huntington, and others will appear at Harborfields High School  where students will get a chance to try a virtual reality simulator that demonstrates the hazards of texting while driving.

On Sept. 19, Assemb. Chad Lupinacci, R-Huntington Station, will participate in a similar program at Whitman High School. Students there will see a 10-minute documentary produced by AT&T called "The Last Text," which shows the devastating effects of even a fleeting distraction from driving. The program begins at 9:15 a.m.

Legendary director Werner Herzog has expanded on shorter public service messages to create a 35-minute documentary on the topic called  "From One Second to the Next," that shows the ruinous effects on both drivers and victims of texting.

The It Can Wait site includes a place to pledge not to text and drive, an online version of the simulator, statistics and a section where viewers can tell their own stories.