PITTSFIELD – Greylock Insurance Agency, a subsidiary of Greylock Federal Credit Union, is proud to bring the state-of-the-art Distractology 101™ Tour to Pittsfield during the week of April 16-20. Distractology 101 is an interactive program developed by the Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation to teach new drivers the dangers of distracted driving.

“We’re proud to be partnering with Arbella to educate teens and other new drivers about the dangers of distracted driving,” said Sharon MacEachern, assistant vice president of Greylock Insurance Agency. “This is about saving the lives of our kids in Berkshire County. We hope parents and teens will recognize the importance of this educational effort. Training like this could be the difference between being safe and being a statistic.”

Industry data suggests that distracted driving is an epidemic in the U.S.: nearly 5,500 people were killed and almost half a million were injured in accidents related to distracted driving in 2009. Distracted driving accounted for 20 percent of all injury crashes during that year.  People who text while driving are 23 percent more likely to be in a crash or barely avoid one. Studies have even shown that driving while distracted is equivalent to driving with a blood alcohol level of .08.

The Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation is attacking the problem of multitasking at the wheel by introducing Distractology 101, with a 36-foot-long, neon-yellow mobile classroom outfitted with high-tech driving simulators that give new drivers (usually teenagers) a real-life look at the potentially disastrous effects of distracted driving.

“Many new drivers aren’t getting the message about the dangers of distracted driving and that’s a real problem,” said John Donohue, chairman, president and CEO of the Arbella Insurance Group and chairman and president of the Arbella Insurance Group.                  


Charitable Foundation. “Nearly one in three young adults texts while driving, according to a recent Consumer Reports study. Our goal with Distractology 101 is to create a new generation of safe drivers who don’t think multitasking at the wheel is acceptable.”

More than 3,700 new drivers have gone through the Distractology 101 simulator since it launched in 2010. Ninety percent of students surveyed said the experience was effective or extremely effective and 70 percent said they would recommend the experience to a friend.

The driving simulator tour, which is based on Arbella-funded research conducted with the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, will travel to select communities throughout Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

During the driving simulator training teens and other new drivers will face a number of scenarios based on real-world examples that illustrate the dangers of distracted driving. It will teach participants how to anticipate hidden hazards, react to the road and avoid accidents.Participants are then asked to complete the online portion of the curriculum. At www.DistractU.com, they’ll take a training lesson for reinforcement of what they learned in the classroom and a safe driving pledge in order to complete the training.

 To sign up for the free Distractology 101 training, contact Greylock Insurance Agency at 413-443-5943.

 About the Arbella Insurance Group and the Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation

Established in 1988 and headquartered in Quincy, Mass., the Arbella Insurance Group (www.arbella.com) is a company with more than $600 million in revenue and approximately $1 billion in assets. Arbella is a customer-focused regional property and casualty insurance company, providing personal and business insurance in Massachusetts and Connecticut and business insurance in Rhode Island and New Hampshire. Arbella Insurance Group founded the Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation in 2004. The mission of the foundation is to engage in activities and to support not-for-profit organizations that have a significant positive impact on the people and communities served by Arbella.

About Greylock Insurance Agency
Greylock Insurance Agency with seven locations county-wide, handles commercial and personal lines including auto, homeowner’s, life, disability, long-term care insurance, all forms of bonding, and 24/7 claims service. More information is available at www.greylockinsurance.com.