FOX 5's Eyes Up, Phones Down Teen Drivers Safety Campaign

WASHINGTON (FOX 5 DC) - The period between Memorial Day and Labor Day is the most dangerous for teen drivers because they are out of school and on the road more, according to research conducted by AAA.

For many teens, their cellphone is something that's hard to put down, even when driving, and the statistics are staggering.

Using teen crash videos, researchers found that teenage texting and driving was the second highest cause of crashes involving young drivers with 60 percent of teen crashes happening because of this distraction, including 89 percent of road-departure crashes and 76 percent of rear-end crashes.

Those stats may be just numbers to some, but to FOX 5 DC Cares, they are our community's sons, daughters, neighbors and friends. That's why we are launching the Eyes Up, Phones Down Teen Drivers Safety Campaign.

FOX 5 DC, along with the Virginia State Police and State Farm Insurance, was in Fauquier County on Tuesday to raise awareness among young drivers.

Students from Kettle Run, Liberty and Fauquier County high schools joined us for a pep rally filled with demonstrations, games and lots of information on how to stay safe on the roads.

FOX 5's Pay It Forward partner Easterns Automotive Group also joined us on Tuesday and announced that Fauquier County High School would receive a free pizza party for the entire student body for their amazing turnout to the event. All students who attended the event also received a $5 Amazon gift card.