New drivers are getting behind the wheel to head back to school, and because the average teen sends and receives five times more text messages a day than a typical adult, AT&T announced a simple – and free – way to lessen the temptation to text while driving. The company launched its AT&T DriveMode mobile application (www.att.com/drivemode), which, when downloaded and activated, automatically sends a customizable reply to incoming texts – notifying the sender that the user is driving and unable to respond. The auto-response is similar to an “out-of-office” email alert. AT&T’s anti-texting-while-driving mobile solution is part of the company’s broader “It Can Wait” campaign that aims to stigmatize texting while driving. Starting today, the app is available for free through the AT&T AppCenter and BlackBerry App World™ stores, with more supporting operating systems planned in the coming months.

By downloading the app, customers are also automatically taking AT&T’s “Texting & Driving…It Can Wait” pledge, joining more than 63,000 others who have made the commitment to not text while driving. In late 2010, AT&T introduced a 10-minute documentary “The Last Text” – which features real stories of individuals whose lives have been drastically altered by texting and driving. It has garnered nearly than 2.5 million views on YouTube, and has been screened in thousands of schools and drivers’ education classes, and among state police agencies, public health organizations, military personnel, government and safety organizations, and many more. For additional information, visit www.att.com/txtingcanwait.