We have all seen the commercials about texting and driving, with the slogan "It can wait". These commercials show the true danger of using your phone while driving. The second you take your eyes off the road to check FaceBook or send a text could be the second that your life could end. No text is worth your life or the lives of others. As we get older, we need to realize that new drivers look to us as an example, and if we are on our phone they think they can as well. But for every 5 seconds your eyes are off the road, that is the equivalent of driving the length of a football field without looking.To protect drivers across our great state, the Texas Legislature needs to pass a statewide law that outlaws the use of cell phones while driving or cycling. Along with outlawing this, law enforcement needs to makes sure that they fully enforce this law. If drivers are not scared about getting punished for still using their cell phones, they will continue to use them and risk people's safety. According to Business Insider, 23% of car accidents involve the use of cell phones that is a total of 1.3 million car accidents! That is 1.3 million accidents that could have been totally prevented if using your cell phone while was illegal. If a driver has an emergency and needs to use his/ her phone they can easily pull off the road and use their device, no text is worth someone's life.
http://forsakeoftexas.blogspot.com/2015/08/save-lives-eliminate-distractions.html
ReplyDeleteI am writing in response to the blog “Texting and driving…it can wait” by the author of the One Star Two Stripes political blog. I 100% agree with this post that that the use of hand-held devices while driving should be banned – ASAP – statewide. Effective as of January 1, 2015, Austin was the first city to pass the ban on texting while driving citywide. There are a number of city ordinances on phone usage while driving in Texas, but none to this extent.
I was shocked to in “Texting and Driving…” that looking away for 5 seconds while driving is equivalent to driving the entire length of a football field! That really helps to create a visual of the distance we drive while just looking away from the road for a few seconds (which is not even enough time to write one text message).
According to the Texas Department of Transportation, one in five crashes is due to driver distraction. TX DoT also reported that 100,825 car accidents – and 468 deaths - in 2014 were related to distracted driving. There’s no doubt that cell phone usage is one of the top distractions while driving, and that many roads would be safer – and lives saved – if the state prohibited use of cell phones while driving statewide.
Within 6 months of the law being in effect, I was pulled over and received a hefty $220 ticket for cell phone usage. I had barely touched my phone while driving that day, but was unfortunate enough to be in the eyes of a policeman during those two seconds. As unfortunate as the fine was, I actually believe that it was a fortunate occurrence, as it now has me question every time I pick up my phone in the car. I still often see people on the roads in Austin with their phones to their ears, and hope that cops make their way around to everyone violating this new law. It really does take punishment to counteract this nasty habit the majority of us do without question every time we’re in the car. I hope Texas enacts this law statewide ASAP.