AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Department of Transportation is taking new measures to cut down on distracted driving with their "Heads up, Texas" campaign.
The campaign aims to address and discourage all forms of distracted driving when behind the wheel.
"Just the other day I was honking at someone putting on makeup," said Kathy Sokolic, who drives the roads of Austin frequently.
"I've seen people shaving their heads in the car while driving," she said.
She says distracted driving is getting worse.
"You see it on every single road, people on their phones, down I-35 in massive traffic, even where there isn't traffic people are cruising down the road on their phones," Sokolic explained.
Picking up the phone while driving could result in life or death situation. According to TxDOT, the city of Austin saw a total of 4,569 crashes due to distracted driving.
Out of all the crashes,15 people where killed and 138 others were seriously hurt.
"It's incredibly scary because it causes crashes, you can crash into someone or something in a split second," Sokolic said.
Being impacted by car wrecks is something she knows very well.
"My nephew was hit in front of his house so he's incapacitated requiring 24-hour care," Sokolic said.
The "Heads up, Texas" campaign hopes to reduce the number of crashes due to distracted driving.
"It makes me feel angry because my safety should not be compromised because you're running late in the morning," Sokolic said.
She says the community could be a whole lot safer if people only kept their focus on the road.
"A lot of people don't think about car crashes until it happens to them," she said.
According to the "It can wait" campaign by AT&T, nearly all Texans surveyed consider smartphone distractions to be dangerous while driving, and only 84% admitted they do it.
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