States, counties, municipalities get the message; Texting bans moving forward at all levels

With the arrival of spring, folks will spend more time outdoors and more time behind the wheel. With more people either driving, walking or riding bicycles, drivers need to be more alert and focused. Texting or talking on a cell phone cannot be part of that equation.

Thankfully, a number of states have recently passed laws banning these unsafe practices.

Courtesy of Orthopaedic Trauma Association (http://www.ota.org)

First, I want to congratulate Wyoming for becoming the 20th state to ban reading and sending text messages while driving. Thank you to the state legislators for passing this measure, and thank you to Governor Dave Freudenthal for promptly signing it into law.

Washington state seems poised to become a safety leader yet again. The state legislature, which was one of the first to ban texting, added a ban on hand-held cell phone use for drivers last Thursday, and this bill would make the practice a primary offense.

"Maybe now people will pay attention to their driving instead of their conversations, " says State Sen. Tracey Eide. It now awaits Gov. Gregoire's signature.

"Calling Plan." Visit distraction.gov for more information

And I read this morning that the Georgia Senate unanimously passed a texting ban yesterday. Oklahoma's texting ban has passed its House test convincingly and heads to its Senate.

I am so happy to hear about that kind of support; it's really encouraging. We'll watch how that legislation advances in both states and report back to readers here.

In Iowa, the legislature has been busy negotiating to get a texting ban passed. I want to thank Governor Chet Culver for leading the fight to make sure that Iowa's ban did not just cover teen drivers. “You can’t mess around with distracted drivers," he says. "We want this to apply to anyone that’s texting because it’s dangerous no matter what the age."

I'm with Chet, and apparently the Iowa Senate is, too. That body unanimously rejected such a narrow law. I wish the Iowa legislature's current compromise didn't limit texting to a secondary offense, but we'll take our progress toward safety one step at a time.

Closer to the DC area, the Maryland legislature seems to be struggling to move its bill forward. A lot of folks are saying it's impossible to enforce such a ban. Well, on that count, I would point detractors back to the state of Washington, where police are grateful for the chance to try.

As Republican Mike Hope, a State Representative who is also a Seattle police officer says, "“It gives police another tool they can use to provide safety to the public."

And I would point them to Police Chief Larry Rinehart, of Bexley, Ohio, who says writing tickets is not even the point: "Nobody expected that we would put Bexley police officers on street corners with binoculars to catch people trying to text." It's all, he says, about making "a statement to the community, especially young people, that texting while driving is unacceptable and can have deadly consequences."

Congratulations, also, to St. Charles County, Missouri. County Executive Steve Ehlmann's executive order bans the county's 1,000 employees from texting at the wheel. Thank you, Steve. Add to that the Missouri DOT's rule banning its 6,300 employees from texting while driving department vehicles and the Missouri state law banning drivers under 21 from texting, and you'd have to say the Show-Me state gets it.

And finally, the city of Columbus, Ohio, is moving forward on the texting front. Councilman Andrew Ginther's proposed ordinance is on the agenda for later this month. While the state of Ohio is also moving a texting ban forward, some municipalities, like Columbus, don't want to wait.

I'm with them. Texting behind the wheel is a deadly epidemic; counties and cities can't afford to wait for their states to get on board, and the people using our roadways and intersections can't afford it either.

So, my most enthusiastic congratulations to Wyoming and Washington and the states that are moving forward to reduce these dangerous driving practices. Working together, with a variety of tools, we can continue making America's roads safer for everyone.

Comments

[Diane Johnson]

Thank you for keeping us informed on how the "Distracted Driving" issue is being handled around our country!

"Turn Off Cell B/4 Driving!" stickers available:

http://myplace.frontier.com/~DriveSafely/

Stay Safe: We'll ALL be safer!

[Michael E. Bailey]

It is great news and very important that a number of states including southern states and states in the Rocky Mountain West that I never would have thought would have gone near such progressive legislation are passing it. I have hope that something can actually be done. For those who say it can't be enforced, I would say it is important to give the police the power to write tickets to people texting or talking on cell phones while driving because that is part of a broader education effort; and education will be the critical part of the whole thing. The ticket does not even have to have a big fine connected to it to get peoples' attention because car insurance carriers don't look at the cost of the tickets a driver gets as much as they look at the number a driver gets. So people who get tickets for texting and/or talking while driving will risk having their insurance premiums bumped up even if the actual ticket is only for $25.00. And if the person was using the phone when they had an accident that will be easy for traffic investigators to determine and the driver will pay still more. These laws do get the attention of most drivers. Best wishes, Michael E. Bailey.

[Paul Hiller]

Thank you, Secretary LaHood, for recognizing and highlighting this very serious and urgent issue. Many in the public fail to realize the consequences of their actions or simply dismiss it as not their problem...until something goes very wrong. It's the doctors of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association that see traumatic injuries from drivers' reckless behavior daily. Please help help spread the word and save a friend - visit www.ota.org/donttext.

[create a free blog]

I never would have thought would have gone near such progressive legislation are passing it. I have hope that something can actually be done. For those who say it can't be enforced, I would say it is important to give the police the power to write tickets to people texting or talking on cell phones.

[HP Bryce]

Texting and driving should be treated with the same seriousness drunk driving. People who are texting and driving and kill someone should be charged with vehicular manslaughter just like if they were drunk.

[Alex Grant]

It's the doctors of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association that see traumatic injuries from drivers' reckless behavior daily. Please help help spread the word and save a friend