With the holiday season fast approaching, Axis wants to remind our employees, families and customers to stay focused on the road and practice safe driving habits. A major concern among drivers is distracted driving, which is any activity that diverts attention away from the task of safe driving. Texting is the most alarming distraction, but distracted driving also includes talking on your phone, eating and drinking, playing with apps on your phone, checking your email or social media, talking to people in your vehicle, and fiddling with the stereo, entertainment or navigation system.

October is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, and Team Axis is committed to safety on and off the wellsite. Now more than ever, drivers on the road have so many distractions that make being on the road dangerous—both for the distracted driver and those around them. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, distracted driving claimed 2,841 lives in 2018 alone and injured an estimated 400,000 people in crashes that same year.

Axis company policy prohibits drivers of company vehicles and those driving for work to use their cell phones while driving, and drivers should also not be manipulating their car radios or other equipment that may cause a distraction.

“The holidays are coming up and we want everyone to be safe,” says Axis President Dirk Lee. “There are so many people on the roads this time of year and weather conditions change all the time, so it’s important to stay focused on driving and nothing else when you have to travel.”

The message of safety is a very important one to the company—safety is our top core value and it guides us through all our business decisions. It’s the mission of Axis to keep our drivers free from distractions, and you can do so by practicing the following safety tips:

• Leave your phone in your backseat.
• On iPhones with iOS 11 and later, a “Do Not Disturb” feature is available that senses when you are driving and sends automatic replies to texts letting them know you’re driving.
• If you need directions to your next location, plug it into your navigation system before you start driving, and if you get lost while on the road, pull over to figure out where you’re going. The most important thing is that you arrive at your destination, even if you’re late.
• Pull over if you need to make a call, send a text or email, or grab a bite to eat.
• Social media can wait; don’t look at it while driving.

Join the National Safety Council and take the Just Drive pledge for Distracted Driving Awareness Month.

No call, text, or email is worth your safety or the safety of the other drivers on the road with you. Axis wishes its employees and their families a safe holiday season, on and off the road.