Transportation Dept. gives $550k to study texting-ban enforcement

AutoBlog: Transportation Dept. gives $550k to study texting-ban enforcement

So far, 39 states have some form of law against texting while driving, but it is a hard thing to enforce. Many drivers continue to text on the road, confident that the local smokies won't spot their sins.

That time might be over for Massachusetts and Connecticut, as the National highway Traffic Safety Administration has awarded $550,000 in order to develop methods to better spot texters in the act. Each state will receive $275,000 to conduct "high visibility anti-texting enforcement programs."

According to U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, "We have come a long way in our fight against distracted driving, but there is still much more work to be done." He continued, "Texting behind the wheel is especially dangerous, which is why we're working with states like Connecticut and Massachusetts to address this important safety issue." Read more in the press release below..

While laws are in effect across the country, it is more difficult to detect texting than it is a driver placing a call on a cell phone. This initiative from NHTSA would develop techniques, such as spotters on overpasses and roving patrols, to determine the effectiveness of these practices. The program will be conducted over a two-year period, and the results will be made available to other states that are encountering texting and driving issues.

PRESS RELEASE:

U.S. Department of Transportation Gives Connecticut and Massachusetts $550,000 for Texting Ban Enforcement Demonstrations

Grants will allow States to Establish Best Practices for Enforcement Programs Aimed at Curbing Texting and Driving?

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced it is providing $550,000 to Connecticut and Massachusetts to help them plan and conduct high-visibility anti-texting enforcement programs. Each state will receive $275,000 to develop and train police officers on better methods for spotting drivers who are texting, and to develop media techniques that alert the public to the perils of texting and driving.
"We have come a long way in our fight against distracted driving, but there is still much work to be done," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "Texting behind the wheel is especially dangerous, which is why we're working with states like Connecticut and Massachusetts to address this important safety issue."

Today, 39 states have laws on the books that specifically ban texting and 10 states have laws that prohibit the use of handheld cell phones while driving. Despite such laws, prior demonstration programs conducted in Hartford, Connecticut, and Syracuse, New York, found that it is more challenging to detect a driver texting behind the wheel compared to drivers talking on a handheld device. The vast majority of tickets issued under those programs were for handheld phone use – about five percent of the citations issued across both communities were for texting violations.

"While it is relatively easier for law enforcement to determine illegal handheld cell phone use by observing the position of the phone at the driver's ear, the dangerous practice of texting while driving is often not as obvious," said NHTSA Administrator David Strickland. "These two new demonstration programs will help identify real-world protocols and practices to better detect if a person is texting while driving."

The demonstration grants announced today by NHTSA call for Connecticut and Massachusetts to develop anti-texting enforcement protocols and techniques such as using stationary patrols, spotters on overpasses on elevated roadways and roving patrols, to test their effectiveness in four successive waves of high-visibility enforcement activities over a 24-month period. The results of these demonstrations will be documented for the benefit of other states which are facing the same challenges.