110 billion text messages, on average, are sent out each month. According to Wikipedia, texting while driving has a greater impact on safety than driving drunk. About half of drivers 16 to 24 have admitted to texting while driving. There have been studies conducted that have examined the reaction time for those engaging in various activities within their vehicles. The results are as follows: unimpaired it takes a driver .54 seconds to brake, legally drunk add 4 feet, reading an e-mail add 36 feet, and sending a text add 70 feet. Nearly half of all states have banned texting while driving, with others looking into legislation to enact these types of laws. The moral of the story is that texting and emailing while driving can be incredibly dangerous. While most people are well aware of the risks that engaging in this type of behavior involves, many people still do it regardless. An interactive voice response system with speech recognition capabilities could go far in helping drivers stay safe and focused, keeping their eyes on the road at all times and their hands on the wheel. This type of IVR system could either work by interfacing with in-car equipment or via blue tooth headset. Instead of having to type out emails or texts, users could simply speak out loud what they were trying to say and the IVR system could transcribe their thoughts into a message for them. The IVR system could read the message back, allow users to designate contacts the message was going to reach, and send the message, all completely hands free! Instead of potentially endangering themselves and other drivers on the road, this IVR system would allow users to completely automate their messages, leaving them to focus on actual driving.
