Arrive Alive Tour gives OCHS students the chance to try nation’s first drugged driving simulator

OWENSBORO, Ky. (WEHT) — Owensboro Catholic High School students are learning the effects of distracted driving through a virtual reality simulation only a handful of people in the country have gotten the chance to experience. The Arrive Alive Tour is an experience that shows what it’s like to drive while drunk. The simulation is also the first to show what it’s like to drive while under the influence of drugs.

The Arrive Alive Tour says it has a social responsibility to educate teens nationwide on the risks of driving under the influence of any kind of distraction. Those distractions include drinking, devices and drugs. Officials say its led them to create the country’s first and only marijuana driving simulator.

The tour’s traveling educator, Shaquille Hill, says each student at OCHS had their choice of distraction.

“…with the drunk one, you have more tunnel vision, as well as a delay steering and depth perception. With the drugs you’re more squinting your eyes…the brightness of it, and a little bit of the depth perception as well,” says Hill.

Experts say one person dies from DUIs every 52 minutes. Hill says they’ve spent the last two years giving special attention to Kentucky.

“Kentucky has, two years in a row, the highest percentage of teen crashes. I know they’re coming out with all new apps. [Teens are] on Tik Tok these days, Facebook and just, you know, handsfree devices,” says Hill.

Brady Atwell, as senior at OCHS, chose drunk driving and was surprised by what occurred after placing the virtual reality goggles over his eyes.

“The vision.. it was very delayed. I crashed into a car that pulled out in front of me. It was too late to react, because I was obviously under the influence. Then, I crashed into the house another time,” says Atwell.

Atwell walked away with a few citations and a reminder that the price tag on these split second decisions can not only cost people their lives, but over $10,000 in legal fees.

“I was given manslaughter, over the speed limit, and I ran multiple red lights. It teaches you not to drink and drive, for sure. The dangers that everybody probably wasn’t aware of…definitely got brought to attention,” says Atwell.

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