Hang up and drive! Or at least obey no-texting laws
Last week’s national summit on distracted driving brought much needed attention to a malady that’s killing and maiming thousands of Americans. It seems cell phone calling and texting along with web surfing is an addiction, and people can’t seem to stop doing it, even when engaged in the most dangerous thing they do each day: driving.
Since it’s not enough to say “Hang up and drive” and expect everyone to do it, anymore than it’s not enough to say “Just say no” to drugs and expect everyone to do it, states are passing laws to, in effect, legislate common sense. Up to 18 states and the District of Columbia now have laws on the books making texting while driving illegal.
Some will say this can’t do any good, since it will be difficult if not impossible for law officers to discern if drivers are texting while driving. But the same argument was made regarding seat belt laws, and those have helped save many thousands of lives. Besides, texts and cell calls leave an electronic trail, including times. It wouldn’t be that hard to determine if a driver was using his or her phone at the precise time of an accident.
The trucking industry thinks it should be above such laws and not have to obey. It argues that truckers use computers in their vehicles to stay in touch with fleet managers and so forth. But that’s no excuse. Taking your eyes off the road even for a second can be just the wrong second, leading to a horrendous semi truck accident. And besides, idle checking of computer screens is probably the indulgence of many truck drivers, not sending or receiving crucial information.
All of us who use America’s roads have a responsibility — to ourselves and to each other — to make driving safety our chief priority. When chatting endlessly to a friend or texting a colleague becomes the priority instead, tragedy can ensue. That’s not an opinion — it’s a fact. So yes, hang up and drive. But do so because you know and understand how important it is, not just because you were told to do so.
18 wheeler, auto accident, big rig, car accident, cell phone accident, semi truck, tractor trailer, traffic accident, truck accident