SOUND OFF: Has the No Texting Law Made You Safer?
The Safe Driving Law took effect more than two years ago. Has it helped?
It has been more than two years since state legislators passed the Safe Driving Law in an attempt to cut down on the dangers caused by distracted driving.
One of the most talked-about sections of the bill, which took effect Sept. 30, 2010, was the monetary penalties attached to text messaging while driving. The first offense comes with a $100 fine; the second, $250, and the third or subsequent offenses, $500.
Stories of texting and driving continue to make headlines, however.
Just this week, WHDH.com reported that a Boston family is in a dispute over a school bus driver they say texts while driving students.
Do you think the Safe Driving Law has helped cut down on the number of distracted drivers? Do you text and drive? What penalties, if any, do you think should be attached to this type of action? Tell us in the comments.
Ryan Seavey
11:15 am on Friday, October 5, 2012
No, it's the act of talking while driving thats the most dangerous, even "hands-free", people shouldn't be allowed to use phones while driving.
UglyHat
11:43 am on Friday, October 5, 2012
So Ryan…you are unable to speak or listen while driving? I hope you notify all of your passengers that they must remain silent throughout the trip.
Texting still happens, but so does drunk driving. The law is good and may have made us safer.
Personally, I think the TV ads with the guy that suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and the girl that lost her sister have had a much greater impact than any law ever will.
slinger
2:35 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
I'm with you Ryan
Kira Gagarin
3:19 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
Ryan and Slinger, you are honestly saying that you don't talk on the phone while driving? I drive a loooooooooot. And I talk on the phone while I drive a looooooot - both for work and personal calls. I have never had a close call due to talking on the phone and don't think its an issue. Texting, of course, is clearly an issue.
Joe Kane
5:09 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
Kira - you are the typical young driver who thinks that they can't be touched by tragedy. Take my advise and put the phone down. YOU may not think that you are distracted by the phone, but the real question is whether those drivers around you agree with your perception. I doubt that very much!! Put the phone down before you kill someone!! That is one action you won't have the chance to "UNDO"!!
Dave Lenane
6:46 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
Kira...I agree with Joe! At least keep calls to an absolute minumum. Remember the issue might not be YOU being distracted. You may have to react to another person texting, while eating a Dunkin Donuts Bagel, reading a book and listening to the radio at the same time! And yes I take calls to, but usually it's just the wife and I tell her I'm driving LOL!!! nyuk..nyuk...nyuk
Ryan Seavey
10:52 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
@ Uglyhat: when talking on a phone while driving, and talking to somebody next to you, your in two very different states of mind, you don't focus nearly as much on somebody next to you as you would somebody on a phone, especial if your connection is less than perfect.
So consider the science of the situation before making "clever" remarks.
Joe Kane
11:34 am on Friday, October 5, 2012
There is still a lot of texting going on. And when I beep the horn at those that are visibly doing it and weaving all over the road, they acknowledge with sign language that they are "#1". Hey.... Right Back At Ya!
Rob Penzke
11:34 am on Friday, October 5, 2012
Ha! Nope. I see people everyday texting and driving/swerving.
Myd Nevins
3:22 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
Agreed.
Joe Kane
11:36 am on Friday, October 5, 2012
I think that we will eventually have to have technology that takes away the ability to text if a phone is moving faster than 10 mph. Even Bobby Valentine fell off his bike while texting in NYC! Idiots come in all different flavors!!
Postman
11:44 am on Friday, October 5, 2012
Joe,
I agree with the technology, but how does the phone know if it's owner is the driver a passenger? The whole phone thing is out of control. Go to a sporting event and all you see is people staring down into their lap looking at their phone. Do people have any face to face interaction anymore?
Joe Kane
11:49 am on Friday, October 5, 2012
Postman - from what I know about the technology it cannot differentiate between driver and passenger. At this point, with the danger that is implied, I would want to shut them down. Also, I am an amateur photographer and do a lot of high school and college sporting events. When I go to develop my pictures on the computer, I am amazed at how many people at the games are staring down at their phones.
Rob Nagi
12:37 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
Has it made me safer? Probably not. My entirely unscientific poll of people going nowhere fast in traffic on the MassPike at the Weston Tolls every morning reveals that about half of the drivers are texting or reading/sending e-mails (or are otherwise looking down at "something" in their lap) and not paying attention to what's going on around them.
SAT
6:03 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
Nope, but not to worry. Pretty soon we'll all have cars driven by Google so we won't have to worry about distracted driving.
Tim Fessenden
9:32 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
There are in fact ways to disable texting, browsing, emailing, etc. when you hit certain threshold speeds. There are also ways to detect between passenger and driver. Check out http://www.10n2tek.com. They have a concept called AVT (Attention Verification Test) that is very intriguing.
Danielle Lizotte
8:14 am on Saturday, October 6, 2012
The scientific evidence is quite clear that while actually holding a phone is worse, talking on any kind of phone while driving increases your risk fourfold of getting into an accident. Lots of people feel like they drive just fine but they don't realize how distracted they actually are. Again, this is another health and safety issue where people require education because I don't think everyone has gotten the memo on the law.. The fact is that that many poeple like Kira have just been lucky. My pet peeve is being behind someone on the highway who slows down and speeds up over and over while they text, oblivious as to how terribly they are driving.
Dennis Wilson
2:05 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Maybe Patch editors could survey local police departments and find out how many citations for texting while driving have een issued.