The hazards of texting while driving is something students at Elba Central School have been learning about this month.
On June 3, Awareness Day at the school, fifth-graders presented information to high-school and middle-school students and staff about the dangers of multitasking on the road.
The fifth-graders' "crack down" is part of Elba's Cell Phone Road Safety project. It included handed out fliers with their slogan "Don't Drive InTEXTicated," along with statistics the youngsters researched about the dangers of texting and driving.
They also promoted radio WGRZ's "Pledge 2 Hang Up" as part of the Awareness Day presentations.
They are students of Amy Thompson and Patricia Staebell.
The day's biggest accomplishment was being able to raise enough money to pay for a
billboard with a public service announcement about the dangers of texting
and driving.
Local businesses have helped the project by generously donating money for the cost of the billboard. The billboard will be on Route 5, visible to westbound traffic, near the Bushville Bridge.
Students also held a contest to design a poster with an antitexting an driving theme and the winning poster is going to be on the billboard. The winner of the contest was AnnMarie Georgia. The poster will be up for two months, beginning June 21.
The fifth-graders hope this project has a big impact on the community and decrease the number of people who text while driving.
