Transportation leaders are challenging the public to be responsible drivers

JUPITER, Fla. - It's tempting to make a phone call or send a text message while driving. "The statistics show that 300,000 people are getting injured due to distracted driving a year and almost 6,000 are dying so its reached epidemic proportions," said Donna Bryan, the marketing director for the Safety Council of Palm Beach County.

As part of Tuesday's national Distracted Driving Summit , transportation leaders are challenging the public to be responsible drivers.

"One moment, one text can just alter your life and somebody else's life forever," said Bryan.

According to the Safety Council, about 30 states have laws against texting and driving and currently Florida is not one of them.

Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that about 6,000 people were killed in 2008 in distracted driver car crashes and more than half a million were injured.