Life

You Won't Text and Drive After Seeing This

by Emma Cueto

Ads can be a lot of things: some are annoying, some are downright insulting, and some are really progressive and cool and wind up getting a ton of backlash for reasons that are invariably stupid. Sometimes, though, ads can send us an important message, like Volkswagon's new "Eyes on the Road" commercial that really drives home the message not to text behind the wheel. (Yes, it's a pun; no, I'm not sorry).

The ad is sort of an ad within an ad – in it we see unsuspecting movie goers at a theater in Hong Kong filing in, then watching as a first-person view of diving a car plays on the movie screen. What happens next though, makes it clear why trying to check your phone while driving is a bad idea – and just how bad that mistake can get.

Cell-phone related traffic deaths are on the rise – in 2011, there were over 3,000 such fatalities officially recorded. However, since cell-phone related crashes are often underreported, the true death toll might be much higher. Regardless, as the Volkswagon ad reminds us, using a mobile phone is now the leading cause of death behind the wheel. So don't text and drive people! And to make sure you remember that, check out this video.