If you were king/queen for the day, how would you fix the texting while driving problem?

Have you ever had a close call on the road with some idiot texting or assling around on their phone?


If I had my way, they would be locked up for attempted murder.


Coming over a hill or around a turn on a rural road, you see a car coming way over the centerline into your lane, and the driver is looking down or typing on their phone, or worse yet, taking a damned selfie… You are lucky if they see you in time to avoid crashing into you, but not before you are forced to mow grass or mailboxes, hopefully not a pedestrian or cyclist…or end up in a ditch.

Fact: 1 out of every 4 car accidents in the United States is caused by texting and driving.

Fact: Texting while driving is 6x more likely to cause an accident than driving drunk.

Fact: The National Safety Council reports that cell phone use while driving leads to 1.6 million crashes each year.

https://www.edgarsnyder.com/car-accident/cause-of-accident/cell-phone/cell-phone-statistics.html

Some states have laws making texting/phone use while driving a primary offense. That is not enough. More people than ever before are killed or maimed for life because of these insensitive drivers.

What is so sad and infuriating, is that this deadly problem is 100% preventable IF the driver had any respect for human life. (If you are guilty of this, STOP it. Like RTFN. No one deserves the tragic consequences of your petty selfishness. Taking your eyes off the road while driving is not cool because statistics about phone use while driving shows how deadly it is.)

So with that in mind, if I were TPTB, the following info would be issued with each new driver's license, and again with each renewal, along with required viewing of videos and photos of wrecks and injuries/deaths resulting from phone use while driving, and passing a written test proving they paid attention to what they saw.

First citation: $2000 fine, 30-day revokement of license, and mandatory 8 hours of viewing videos and photos of wrecks and injuries/deaths resulting from phone use while driving, and passing a written test proving they paid attention to what they saw.

Second citation: $4000 fine, 60-day revokement of license, plus 16 hours video/test (split into two sessions)

Third citation: $6,000 fine, 90-day revokement of license, plus 24 hours video/test (split into three sessions)

Fourth citation: $10,000 fine, permanent revokement of license, attempted murder charges and prison time plus labor to pay for 3 hots and a cot.


Driving while texting is about the most selfish thing you can do. Get them off the road. Lock them up. No loopholes. Same deal should apply to drunken drivers because the tragedies they inflict on others are also 100% PREVENTABLE.


Here are current state laws: http://www.ncsl.org/research/transportation/cellular-phone-use-and-texting-while-driving-laws.aspx

using a hand held mobile phone whilst driving is illegal in the UK but we don't have enough Police to catch them.

Every cellular phone manufactured in the US has the technology to stop all functionality when in motion in excess of a certain MPH. They can all also be limited to only the talk function where texting, data, etc. all stop until the vehicle stops. But the cell phone makers refuse to implement it, the phone companies refuse to implement it, and the gov't refuses to regulate it. Instead they want LEO's to enforce laws that ensure a flow of money to the gov't but do not to solve the problem in any way. We would need 10,000 more traffic cops in every state with judges riding along to approve warrants for cell phone access (proof beyond a reasonable doubt and all) and computer techs in the backseat who can crack the passwords. None of that is going to happen and thus enforcement is nearly pointless. We are already at the point where distracted driving kills more people than drunk driving.

Like everything else all that needs to happen is enough public outrage to force a politicians to introduce a bill and enough politicians to vote to pass it. But they are so busy with impeachment, giving money to illegals, making sure transsexuals can flaunt their crotches in public, and trying to ban guns they don't have time to serve the interest of the American people.

2nd citation, instead of videos, they do "ride along" and help clean up the accident scenes for 16 accidents.

3rd is 24 accidents.

4th, I like your solution.

I would go for this:

1st offense - steep fine ($500-1000) and loss of driving privileges for 60 days.
2nd offense - ludicrous fine ($2500-3000) and driving revocation for 1 year.
3rd offense - insane fine ($5000) and permanent revocation of driver's license.
4th offense - Forced to live in Los Angeles and drive a pink bicycle while wearing a MAGA hat.

In Canada if your caught with a firearm in the boat while fishing (they use helicopter , ask me how I know) they can and often do, confiscate everything you have...boat, motor , anything in the boat .

You get caught using a cell phone while driving....you lose it all.

I'm bettin that would save a bunch of lives.

Jim

Sentry18 said:

I would go for this:

1st offense - steep fine ($500-1000) and loss of driving privileges for 60 days.
2nd offense - ludicrous fine ($2500-3000) and driving revocation for 1 year.
3rd offense - insane fine ($5000) and permanent revocation of driver's license.
4th offense - Forced to live in Los Angeles and drive a pink bicycle while wearing a MAGA hat.

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catching them in the act in the UK is the problem and most know they can get away with it so they continue to do so.

lonewolf said:

catching them in the act in the UK is the problem and most know they can get away with it so they continue to do so.

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Which bring us back to the technology. Just turn them off when in motion, problem solved.

When caught the phone needs to be taken for 30 days, 2nd time they are caught phone is taken until they go to court.
Sentry is right. The phone companies could stop it, but they won't. There is no incentive for them. The only way the phone companies will ever do anything is if it cost them a lot of money.
One of the biggest problems is getting people to back any solution because most people are guilty of driving and talking or texting.
The media could ramp up the pressure but they are too busy trying to get Trump.
I wonder if you are ever in an accident where the other person is on the phone would you have any success suing the phone company.

I would require cell-tower drones in cars that would turn on above a certain speed. They only cost about $50. I spent time in a factory that had one to reduce accidents. All you can do is dial 911.
Cellphones always connect to the strongest signal so it's gotcha!
Like Lonewolf said, laws and signs been out for years but are practically unenforceable.

As for the factory, if you wanted to use your phone, you went outside.

Sentry18 said:

Which bring us back to the technology. Just turn them off when in motion, problem solved.

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And the people who aren't driving? Or the ones who use the map programs?

Then there's that pesky insurance problem. Insurance companies can refuse to pay for accidents and injuries caused by cell phone use while driving. And they have the right to access phone time logs as well.

https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/car-accidents-cell-phones-30055.html

Excerpted from the link:

"...in addition to breaking the law, using a cell phone while driving may also expose you to a lawsuit if you are involved in a car accident..."

Examples of careless driving caused by phone use include:

• driving with only one hand on the steering wheel
• taking eyes off the road to reach for a cell phone, dial a number, or send a text message
• failing to keep a proper lookout and to pay attention to surrounding dangers because of distractions caused by the cell phone (this includes being distracted by a passenger's cell phone use), and
• being distracted by a conversation on a cell phone (according to some studies, being involved in any kind of conversation -- particularly an emotionally charged one -- is enough to distract a driver and cause him or her to drive carelessly), even while on a "hands-free" device.

Snipers...

Sentry18 said:

Every cellular phone manufactured in the US has the technology to stop all functionality when in motion in excess of a certain MPH. They can all also be limited to only the talk function where texting, data, etc. all stop until the vehicle stops. But the cell phone makers refuse to implement it, the phone companies refuse to implement it, and the gov't refuses to regulate it. Instead they want LEO's to enforce laws that ensure a flow of money to the gov't but do not to solve the problem in any way. We would need 10,000 more traffic cops in every state with judges riding along to approve warrants for cell phone access (proof beyond a reasonable doubt and all) and computer techs in the backseat who can crack the passwords. None of that is going to happen and thus enforcement is nearly pointless. We are already at the point where distracted driving kills more people than drunk driving.

Like everything else all that needs to happen is enough public outrage to force a politicians to introduce a bill and enough politicians to vote to pass it. But they are so busy with impeachment, giving money to illegals, making sure transsexuals can flaunt their crotches in public, and trying to ban guns they don't have time to serve the interest of the American people.

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I had guessed that that this technology or something similar is available. Shortly after Trump makes me The Advisor Who Must Be Obeyed, there will be an executive order to activate it.

Terri9630 said:

And the people who aren't driving? Or the ones who use the map programs?

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Or eating, falling asleep, changing radio stations, yelling at their kids, etc., etc. All we can do is remove the technology part. Which is when the number of deaths really started to spike.

I drive a school bus. We have to keep any phone out of sight and out of reach and we do.

They say they take distracted driving seriously but have no problem putting up to 63 undisciplined brats in the back seat, none of them having any sense of restraint, and that includes their parents.

26 of my kids are between the ages if 4-6 years out of 57 total. It kills me that those numbers per one adult behind the wheel of a very large moving object isn't, considered a problem as well. It takes some serious multi-tasking to keep a school bus on the road.

Kind of side tracked the topic a bit, but on top of every thing else, we have these phone zombies running our stop sign and flashers all the time. If I were queen for a day, I would develope the technology to make their heads explode when they do.

This is quickly becoming equal to DWI's. The laws and fines associated with drunk driving are pretty stiff in some cases and it doesn't stop "some" people from doing it. Laws are only going to be obeyed by those of us that choose to and have enough common sense to do it.

Every state should have a law for 'hands free' driving, it's been a federal law for commercial vehicles for a few years now but I went hands free 2 or 3 years before they made it a law because its safer and to be honest, easier. It's almost impossible, even with today's technology to make it completely possible without at least a finger tap, which means your eyes are off the road for that split second.

I can virtually do the hands free thing in my Jeep, all I have to do is touch a button on my steering wheel (and I can do that without looking) and from there it's voice command, calling or texting. My Daughter texted me yesterday and I texted her back through the Jeep. It leaves a note each time that says, "Sent by my Jeep". First time she had seen it and it kinda tickled her a bit, lol. If my Wife is with me I have her do the tapping on the screen if need be.

Bottom line, no matter how stiff you make the penalties there will always be those that are gonna do it, just like drunk driving.

Most laws I don't need because I have enough common sense not to do it knowing the difference between right and wrong or I'm morally, mentally and emotionally stable enough not to do something.

Terri9630 said:

And the people who aren't driving? Or the ones who use the map programs?

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People used to drive without a cell phone. They could live without a phone while they travel. If the call is that important stop and park somewhere safe. Not on the side of the freeway like some fools do. The ticket for either one is the same.

ClemKadiddlehopper said:

I drive a school bus. We have to keep any phone out of sight and out of reach and we do.

They say they take distracted driving seriously but have no problem putting up to 63 undisciplined brats in the back seat, none of them having any sense of restraint, and that includes their parents.

26 of my kids are between the ages if 4-6 years out of 57 total. It kills me that those numbers per one adult behind the wheel of a very large moving object isn't, considered a problem as well. It takes some serious multi-tasking to keep a school bus on the road.

Kind of side tracked the topic a bit, but on top of every thing else, we have these phone zombies running our stop sign and flashers all the time. If I were queen for a day, I would develope the technology to make their heads explode when they do.

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You only have 63? We have to haul 72 of the little "darlings". No phone, no radio but we have to keep the kids under control and in their seats while keeping the bus in our lane, our stops on time while watching all the other traffic in all weather conditions.

A nuclear EMP should solve the problem. Most people won't be driving and even if their car still works the cell phone won't.

backlash said:

People used to drive without a cell phone. They could live without a phone while they travel. If the call is that important stop and park somewhere safe. Not on the side of the freeway like some fools do. The ticket for either one is the same.

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I'm talking about the passengers using their phones. Not the driver. If the phone are blocked then the passengers in the vehicle will be blocked as well.

I don't think it's as big an issue as we all make it out to be. We also have laws on the books that already cover stuff like this so no need of new laws. Reckless driving, reckless endangerment, manslaughter, etc. Remember, people getting their panties in a wad and start demanding safety laws is how we get to the point where we have 50 redundant laws on the books for every infraction. Just make texting, internet etc subject to the existing laws. You are not going to stop stupidity and irresponsible behavior with more government. If you really want to stop it it takes public sentiment and peer pressure. Anti smoking folks figured that out and that, imo, has been far more effective than laws would have been.

Terri9630 said:

You only have 63? We have to haul 72 of the little "darlings". No phone, no radio but we have to keep the kids under control and in their seats while keeping the bus in our lane, our stops on time while watching all the other traffic in all weather conditions.

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Yep, only 57 on my bus due to special circumstances. 2 with severe life threatening allergies (have to make sure no one eats or drinks), 1 with severe car sickness needing a barf bucket, and rain gear for seat mates, 1 with a heart condition, 1 who regularly screams her head off because of "pee cramps" and my favorite; a budding pedophile who cannot be put in a seat belt or the really needed straight jacket. A driver is not allowed any physical contact with a child and yet I have to pull over and somehow get him to release his death grip on some one else's crotch. Guess his parents are able to shout down the powers that be. Today we drove with 80 kph wind mixed with rain and snow, in the dark, with power lines and downed trees every where. BUS DRIVER!!!!!!! I GOT PEE CRAMPS!!!!!

That's like me driving in a sand storm with 55-60mph winds and kids jumping and hollering and trying to sneak out of their seats. All the while trying to watch for cars pulled off the road, on the wrong side of the road, stopped ON the road, kids not wanting to,get off the bus because they can't see through the sand... We need hazard pay....

Sentry18 said:

Or eating, falling asleep, changing radio stations, yelling at their kids, etc., etc. All we can do is remove the technology part. Which is when the number of deaths really started to spike.

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I remember choosing my car because it didn't have that damn screen in the middle of the dashboard. It has regular knobs for the radio and temperature controls. The dash is basic......just the way I like it.

I still have a flip phone and I rarely text. There's NO way I could do it while driving even if I wanted to. Most of the time my purse is in the back seat with my phone in it. I'm not on the road that much and I rarely use my cell so it's not an issue for me. However, the other idiots on the road ARE an issue. I don't think more laws will do any good but higher fines sound like a good idea to me. People are going to do what they want to do no matter what the law says. In all honesty, we all pick and choose what laws we will abide by and which ones we wont. Is that speed limit sign just a suggestion? Have you ever rolled through a stop sign? I'm not saying it's not an issue that doesn't need to be regulated, but I just don't think more new laws are going fix it, especially considering that people get away with it every single day. Sadly, until something happens to THEM, it will continue to be an issue.

As stated above, technology created the problem. It's going to have to be technology that solves it.

ETA: I wonder how many citations are actually written for texting while driving or cell use while driving? I have never heard of anyone around here getting a ticket for it. I'm thinking it's b/c it would be a tough case for the officers to argue in court? It seems like it would take a lot of work to get that case proven in court and it probably isn't worth their time to do it? My guess is also that the people who get issued tickets are those who had an incident to go along with it. Just guessing......

The towns north and east of us are hands free. They will stop you to write tickets. If you contest it the judge will have your cell records subpoenaed and compare your call/text records with the dash cam times.

Technology doesn't make problems. The people using technology create the problems. When people start thinking about the results of their actions and take the responsibility for those results the problems will fade.

CrackbottomLouis said:

I don't think it's as big an issue as we all make it out to be.

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https://carsurance.net/blog/texting-and-driving-statistics/

Quick Texting and Driving Statistics – 2019 (Editor’s Choice)

• Driving while texting causes 1.6 million car accidents in the US every year.

• 21% of US drivers reported sending emails or text messages while on the road.

• 14% of all fatal crashes in the US involved the use of a cell phone.

• In 2018, the number of deaths related to cell phone use in car accidents was 4,637 in the US alone.
• Almost 390,000 injuries occur annually in the US due to texting while driving.

======================================================

Yeah, it's a major issue.

Terri9630 said:

The towns north and east of us are hands free. They will stop you to write tickets. If you contest it the judge will have your cell records subpoenaed and compare your call/text records with the dash cam times.

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I wonder how this works with people that have 2 or more cell phones? What if it was a burner phone? What if they were using someone elses phone? I wonder if frequent offenders would just get a cell phone registered in a family members name but use it as their own? I'm just thinking of ways someone who was determined to do this would get around the law.

SheepDog said:

Technology doesn't make problems. The people using technology create the problems. When people start thinking about the results of their actions and take the responsibility for those results the problems will fade.

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Although I agree with the premise of what you say, how likely do you think it is that people take responsiblity for their own actions?

And, the statistics say.......they won't.

It is apparent to me that most people with cell phones do not use them while driving or are at lest better at doing the two at the same time.
I see no reason to diminish the technology for everyone when a few are causing the problem.It's like having to place a hard cover over your swimming pool because some people are too distracted to watch the kids in the pool, or banning the internet because child molesters use it to lure children into traps. Find a way to stop the problem without affecting those who do not pose a problem.