1620 5th AvenueThe Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) has strengthened and revamped its policy for distracted drivers, according to the Sacramento Bee. The GHSA has called for legislators to ban handheld phones for all drivers and a total ban on all electronic devices for young drivers as well as school bus drivers.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) reports that handheld cell phone bans have proven to be effective in New York and Connecticut, and police were able to enforce the new laws efficiently. Texting bans apart from complete handheld bans are more difficult to enforce, because a driver can claim they where dialing after being pulled over by an officer, not texting. According to the California Office of Traffic Safety, California had 460,487 handheld cell phone convictions for drivers in 2011 compared to only 14,886 texting while driving convictions. Thirty-nine states and Washington D.C. have a texting ban, and ten states and Washington D.C. have cell phone bans.
“Passage of these laws will provide states a practical platform for discussing why any phone use while driving is dangerous,” says GHSA Executive Director Barbara Harsha.
If law enforcement cannot effectively enforce the texting ban, they must target all drivers on cell phones. Please visit our website for more information on distracted driving, and contact our office for a free consultation if your or a loved one have been injured in a car accident.
Bonnici Law Group, APC—San Diego accident lawyer.
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