There’s nothing like driving 65 on the highway through a beautiful city and wanting to snap the awesome view or take snaps of yourself simply jazzing to music in your car. In a way, we are all vloggers through our Snapchat behavior because videoing has become a part of our daily lives, even in our commute. But are we really safe doing these distracting activities on the go?
Throughout this article I will be using the term “snapping” as a verb to mean the act of recording a video or taking a picture to be uploaded to a Snapchat story. For the purpose of this article, “snapping” will not include one-on-one communication with any one individual. “Snap-driving” as I call it, is another term I will be using that is simply snapping while driving.
First, I must admit I am probably the most guilty of all these habits, so I write completely from a firsthand experience. At the beginning of this week, I got a text from one of my cousins, who I have as a friend on Snapchat, advising me not to snap and drive. At first, I took the information lightly because this is something I knew I should not be doing, one of those conscience things, you know?
It can be hard to follow your conscience, though, when Snapchat seems to offer such cool incentives for snap-driving. For one, there are all the pretty geotags we all love, that show where we are. Then, there is the speed filter that shows how fast you are going, which is especially thrilling on highways. Who with a Snapchat has never tried to increase their speed just to see that number go up? I mean it’s cool…but it isn’t all fun and games.
Towards the end of this week, I heard about an incident that hit kind of close to home. A friend of mine came home to find that a teen cruising through her neighborhood, snapping while driving, had collided with her car, which was parked in her driveway, and pulled it two houses down, smashing mailboxes along the way. This, I’m sure is just one of the many examples of auto accidents occurring due to Snapchat, and thankfully no one was hurt in this instance.
However lightly we may take our snapping actions, we must realize that we are not invincible. Once you lose control over your vehicle, you lose control over your life.
From a personal standpoint, I can completely understand the sort of nonchalant feeling we have towards snap-driving. You almost feel as if it’s no big deal because for one, if you are like me and have done it many times with no repercussions, it may seem normal. Plus, all you have to do is hit the circle and keep your eyes straight ahead after that, right?
Maybe so, but then, you may want to put a witty caption with it so you have to glance down continually for that. Then, once you’ve done that, you may want to watch it to see how it looks. Or even if you don’t you have to look down long enough to hit the upload icon. So, snap-driving is really not a one-step process. In that same instant, while your eyes are on your screen, the person in front of you could brake up and you would have no idea.
The snapping itself is not the sole issue either. Other issue arises with the use of the cellphone in general, while driving. Most people have a password to their phones. Just those ten or 13 seconds it takes you to get that pattern or password could be the most fatal seconds of your life or someone else’s.
I hate being my own prime example in this, (and I plan to do better in the future, I promise!) but this has happened to me a few times. One time in particular, I was driving and wanted to play music from my tablet. Why I did not do this before I moved out of the parking lot is beyond me. Anyway, being the scatter brain I sometimes am, here I was in the car, wanting to use my tablet. I glanced down at my tablet to unlock it and got the pattern wrong. Shoot. So, I glanced back up and took a mental picture of the road, curves and all, naively thinking this would help me navigate while I have my eyes on the tablet. That sure proved to be a false sense of security! In a matter of the eight seconds I glanced down to redraw my pattern, I had already veered off the road. Luckily, I glanced up again just in time to miss the curb I was headed for.
My advice to all young adults with Snapchat who practice this dangerous habit, is to try to find safer ways of doing what you love. Instead of snap-driving, drive with a friend and have them snap you. Or, if you do happen to be alone, snap only while you are parked, that way you can still catch geotags if you so desire.
To give credit where credit is due, Snapchat does have a “Don’t snap and drive” disclaimer on their speed filter, but for many who have gotten into this habit, it is just a shrug-off. But I urge you to please heed this warning. Do not shrug it off because I promise you whatever cool thing you see or want to upload to Snapchat while driving is not worth your life or someone else’s. Wake up now. Don’t wait for the BOOM!