Thursday, December 8, 2011

Texting while driving: a growing danger

Quite possibly as dangerous as driving drunk
A new national report says Driving While Texting – which some experts say is as dangerous as drunk driving – went up 50 percent last year.
Some key numbers from the report, which you can read here:
  • 18 percent of drivers said they’ve sent texts or emails while driving
  •  Half of drivers aged 21 to 24 said they’ve texted while driving
  •  At any giving time, almost 1 percent of drivers are texting
According to the Associated Press story, other places in America saw reductions in this behavior by drivers after new laws were passed.
Pilot projects in Hartford, Connecticut and Syracuse, New York showed a reduction after a public education campaign was coupled with police enforcement.
Driving While Texting dropped by a third in Syracuse.
It was cut by 57 percent in Hartford, Connecticut.
Here in Washington state, we responded by passing a law banning texting while driving.
It will be interesting to see how our state’s latest numbers compare to the national report.
The AP story quotes a spokesman for the Governor’s Highway Safety Association, Jonathan Adkins, as saying enforcement is the best approach: "It is clear that educational messages alone aren't going to change their behavior. Rather, good laws with strong enforcement are what is needed. Many drivers won't stop texting until they fear getting a ticket. The increase shows what an uphill challenge distracted driving remains."

To read this blog post in Spanish, click here.

Apture