PALATINE - Lt. Governor Sheila Simon will challenge Harper College students on Thursday to sign an online pledge not to text and drive. Simon, the governor's point person on education reform, is visiting community colleges across the state this fall to urge commuter students to practice safe texting.

AT&T's "It Can Wait" campaign aims to educate drivers on the dangers of texting while driving. Nationwide, drivers are 23 times more likely to get in an accident if they text while driving. In the first half of 2011 in Illinois, cell phone distractions were the cause of more than 500 crashes. Simon took the "It Can Wait" pledge in September.

"Texting is one of the leading causes of distracted driving, an epidemic that causes far too many accidents and deaths on our roadways," Simon said. "There is no text message important enough to risk your life - it can wait."


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