Texting While Driving
Yes, this topic seems to be popping up more and more as texting while driving is being sited as the reason of many fatal accidents. On November 20, 2008 a woman and her 4-month old daughter were killed when the young mother talking on her cell phone ran a red light and hit a cement truck. And we can’t forget the tragic commuter train-crash in California last September that killed 25 people because the train operator, as the NTSB reported, had been texting while operating the train. My heart goes out to all of those involved in this tragic accident.
According to the Governors Highway Safety Association numerous states are implementing laws that make texting while driving illegal, the District of Columbia and 14 other states have passed laws that ban texting while driving and 21 other states and the District of Columbia have a ban on all cell phone use by novice drivers.
In Richmond, Virginia, as of July 1, 2009, drivers that are found to be sending text messages or emails while driving will face a $20 fine for the first offense and $50 for the second offense. The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles reported last year that there were 28,395 crashes involving driver distraction. Of those, 114 people died and 14,480 were injured.
There are several exceptions in the new law banning texting and emailing in Virginia. Those exceptions include emergency vehicle operators, drivers who are parked, and drivers who are reporting an emergency. Furthermore, texting while driving is a secondary offense, which means that the Police Officer must have stopped the driver for a different reason before citing the driver for texting while driving.
Fox News in Cleveland, Ohio reported on July 17, 2009 that the city is ready to start implementing their ban on texting while driving (TWD). Fox also reports first time offenders will face a $100 fine, 2nd offense is $250, and the 3rd offense nets the offender a $500 fine.
Considering the huge fines if caught texting while driving in Cleveland, it hardly seems worth it. I love to use my phone just as much as the next person but not if its going to cost me upwards of $500 if I’m caught texting.
25 states have made texting while driving a primary offense, with only a handful of states making this a secondary offense. The states that have laws against texting while driving only have a ban on the offense for bus drivers, learner permit drivers, and drivers less than 18 or 19.
It has even been reported by the U.K. Transport Research Laboratory, that TWD (Texting While Driving) reduced drivers reaction times by 35%. Additional research shows that drunk driving reduces the drivers reaction time by 12%. Using just the reaction time percentages, texting while driving is around 3 times more dangerous than drunk driving.
It would be a great idea to check the laws in your state on whether or not texting while driving is illegal and also if there are laws against cell phone use while driving before engaging in such a distracting action.