Watch out; kids messaging ahead!

As kids head back to school next week, many will be walking with a new smartphone.

And that means they won’t be as attentive as they should be to automobile traffic, according to researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Their research found that a child’s ability to safely cross the street is hindered more during a cellphone conversation than an adult’s. The study, “Cell phone conversations and child pedestrian’s crossing behavior; a simulator study,” is in the November 2016 issue of “Safety Science.”

According to the researchers, although many children have been carrying cell phones for a number of years, the effect that cell phone conversations can have on children’s crossing behavior had not been thoroughly examined previously. As might be expected, the researchers found “cell phone conversations jeopardize pedestrians’ ability to safely cross the road.”

With the end of summer vacation, drivers need to take special care.

We used to warn drivers of the potential for kids to be darting onto the road running after a ball. Now we have video games, messaging and parents calling to “check in”, each serving as distractions for kids heading to and from school.

It isn’t enough to avoid using our phones while driving; be sure to watch out for pedestrians, especially children, who may forget to watch out for you.