For Teens, Texting While Walking Is Also Dangerous

For teenage drivers (or anyone, really), texting while driving is a bad idea. Texting while walking may not be much safer. A new study from Safe Kids Worldwide (PDF), a Washington (D.C.)-based nonprofit, found that 40 percent of teens say they’ve been hit or nearly hit by a car, bike, or motorcycle while walking. The primary culprit: distraction from a mobile device.

In a survey of more than 1,000 teens age 13 to 18, researchers found that of those who said they were hit or almost hit, 47 percent were listening to music while crossing the road, 18 percent were texting, and 20 percent were talking on the phone.