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No more texting while driving
Don't text and drive starting July 1 in Virginia; Statewide ban goes into effect on Wednesday
Date published: 6/25/2009
By KELLY HANNON Beginning Wednesday, drivers will have one less distraction. Virginia has banned text messaging while operating a motor vehicle. The ban starts July 1, the day most new state laws go into effect. Virginia is one of 14 states to ban text messaging while driving, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. A handful of other states have banned text messaging for drivers under 18 and school bus drivers. Using a hand-held cell phone to make calls while driving is still allowed for drivers over age 18, but typing text or reading text messages or e-mails will be forbidden while operating a moving vehicle. Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller acknowledged it is hard to resist the pull of a newly received e-mail on a mobile device. "They call it 'crackberries' for a reason," Geller said, using the nickname for Blackberries, phones that also deliver e-mail. For many owners, such phones are addictive forms of technology that allow them to constantly be in touch with family, friends and co-workers--even when they should be paying attention to traffic. Geller said the ban will raise awareness that glancing away from the road to stare at a miniscule screen--even for a second or two--is a dangerous gamble. "You'll just have to resist the urge when you hear your Blackberry rattle across the seat next to you," she said. Del. John Cosgrove, R-Chesapeake, sponsored the bill in the Virginia General Assembly that led to the texting ban, which was passed overwhelmingly in the House of Delegates and the Senate, and signed by Gov. Tim Kaine. With any law, there are exceptions. Drivers may send a text message to report an emergency. Drivers operating emergency vehicles are exempt from the ban. Global Positioning Systems are not considered wireless devices under the ban, so drivers can still keep a hand on the wheel and punch in an address. Also, drivers are allowed to send or read a text message when legally parked or stopped. In the Fredericksburg area, drivers might consider themselves "stopped" or "parked" in gridlock on the Falmouth Bridge or Interstate 95--but it still may not be permissible to send or read texts then.
Date published: 6/25/2009
just another unneeded law
(posted by
smeady
, July 1, 2009 11:23 am)
"Reckless Driving" and/or "Failure to Pay to Full-time Attention" are already traffic codes. Enforce the current laws and quit wasting the tax-payers money. (smeady says while using the wireless laptop on the road. nope, not texting or emailing so I'm obeying the law.) :-)
it's pretty clear if you look around while stopped at a light
(posted by
larryg
, June 26, 2009 12:14 pm)
that cell phone usage is not ..... "occasional" but rather
pretty rampant...
and while all of us can probably be accused of being
distracted at various times when we ought not - what it boils
down do is whether or not your are being distracted - on
purpose and on a continuous basis.. and it's clear to me
that more than a few folks fall into this category.
do we need a "nanny" ? unfortunately yes. There are folks
thorough all walks of life who basically will not do the right
thing unless there is a law ..
last one
(posted by
hvnlbrn
, June 26, 2009 8:38 am)
phone when within 10 feet of it! Or what gets me is when I'm on my way to work at 6 am, and I notice the fools on I-95 on their phones. Seriously? Who are you talking to on the phone at 6 am? Do all these people hate themselves so much that they can't spend a quiet moment alone? I guess that's all for my rant today. :)
cont'd.
(posted by
hvnlbrn
, June 26, 2009 8:33 am)
you, coming from the opposite direction, count how many of them are on the phone. It's getting to the point that when I count cars coming through a turn lane, more of them are on the phone than those that are not. Watch people as they leave their homes, or businesses. They'll walk outside, and as they get closer and closer to their car, BAM! Out comes their phone, and away they go, dialing, typing, surfing. What gives? It's as if there's a sensor in the car that will blow up if the operator is not on the..
My driver exam test
(posted by
hvnlbrn
, June 26, 2009 8:29 am)
It's been about 16 years since I took an actual driving exam, (not the written portion) but I'm curious about something. When you take the driving portion of your exam these days are you required to talk on the phone? Seems people don't know what to do around a vehicle if they're not on the phone. Next time you're on the road, and you're stopped at a light, look at the cars around you. Count how many of the people around you are doing something on their phone. Then when you see people turning in front of..
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