I get very nervous when I ride shotgun with people who decide to read their Blackberry or send text messages when driving. It is an inherently stupid and dumb thing to do, considering that not only it puts their own well being at risk, it raises dangers for everyone on the around. There have be an increase in number of the accidents as a result of the DWT (Driving while TXTing)
Apparently there are many such people out there. A survey by Common Knowledge Research Services on behalf of Vlingo, polled 5,000 people about their text messaging habits. The study found that nearly 28% people send text messages while driving. The drivers in South Carolina (word), Tennessee, Georgia, Maryland and Louisiana are the worst offenders. Arizona has the lowest incidence of DWT, the survey reports.
I wonder if this is a more dangerous trend than simply talking on the cell phone while driving, and needs to be legislated as soon as possible. Twenty three US states are considering legislation to ban driving while texting. They should do it soon. The survey shows that 85% of those who were texting while driving say they won’t DWT if it was illegal. To them: you don’t need a law to not be stupid.
Some other interesting facts from the survey:
* 55% consumers use their mobile phones to text message.
* 42% use their mobile phones equally or more for texting than making phones calls.
* 85% of teens (ages 13-19) and young adults (ages 20-29) are the most inclined to txt.
* 34% send 500 or more texts each month.
It is illegal to text while driving in Australia, its insanity to think you should try to read or write an email/text while driving a car.
The sooner it becomes illegal in the US the better, its incredibly unsafe.
Could not agree more. I was driving to the airport last week and saw a car ahead of me that was all over the road, drifting between lanes. As I went past him (hoping it was better to put some distance between us) I looked over and saw that he was busy trying to type on his Blackberry while driving. I hope he made it safe to where ever he was going, but it certainly wasn’t increasing his odds of arriving without harm by driving and typing at the same time.
yup i agree specially in the Philippines some people drive while txting its so stupid thing they do they don’t even care that they might cause an accident.
Om,
It seems you’ve found the poster child for stupidity when it comes to texting. Whatever happened to common sense with teenagers?
I think the larger issue is beyond the regulation of texting as I don’t think that form of regulation is enforceable. Simply, how does an officer know when someone is texting versus viewing their cell phone screen? How do police decide between someone who’s using a hands free device that may be dialing versus texting, note that “hands free” doesn’t really me “hands free” as much as it means “hands free while talking” as the phone manufacturers aren’t required to make voice based navigation on their phones. This requirement of the phone manufacturers would deliver true “hands free” driving.
Hence the larger and real issue is the regulation of cell phone use by teens and young adults as they drive. They are the most likely to text while driving, yet they would be singled out which the ACLU is likely to fight.
BIG problem.
My latest was watching someone smoke and text while making a left-hand turn onto El Camino. Can’t wait until there are video-to-Twitter uploads available.
@Curtis –
I agree that regulation prohibiting texting while driving wouldn’t be very enforceable. It’s probably still worth it though, especially if it kicked in additional penalties for accidents that happened while texting.
Your comment focuses on teenagers/young adults, which I think is only part of the problem. The guy I saw going all over the road was clearly over 30.
I think the problem is two-fold…it’s unenforcable and that’s easily seen by how lax the police are about the cell phone bans. It’s been completely ineffective and people frequently drive by cops while on the phone in downtown Chicago. Trying to figure out if someone is texting would be even more difficult as they don’t have to be holding their phone in plain sight like with a call. The second problem is that if it’s not one distraction, it’s another, and there’s still people on the highway reading the newspaper or eating and driving erratically as a result.
Om, thanks for drawing attention to this; solving this disconnect is precisely why we were founded. Hopefully we’ll be able to give everyone a happy medium to reduce/eliminate the manual entry that is so prevalent today.
If it was my daughter putting her life and the lives of everybody else unfortunate enough to be on the same street as her I’d have either taken the phone and/or the car away.
Idiot child and idiot parent for letting her do it – these people who think texting is so important are killing innocent people.
My name is Russell Hurd and I live in Abingdon Maryland.
Over the Christmas holidays my family an d I traveled to Florida to visit with my daughter Heather who was employed at Walt Disney World. As part of this visit we planned to meet at Disney’s wedding planner to discuss plans for Heathers upcoming wedding. This meeting was scheduled for noon on Jnauray 3, 2008.
At 11;30am, while traveling to meet her mom and I at the wedding planner, stopped at a traffic signal, my Heather and ten other vehicles were hit an d run over by a tractor trailer driver who failed to notice the ten cars stopped at the light. My Heather was killed instantly along with another young woman in a different vehicle. The reason the driver didn’t notice is alleged to have been because he was text messaging when the accident occurred.
Since the accident we have started a letter writing campaign an dpetition drive to make Heathers Law a reality not only in our home state of Maryland but across the nation. Heather’s Law would be a comprehensive ban on hand held cell phones and text messaging while driving except in cases of emergency.
Studies now show that the use of cell phones are as dangerous while driving as DUI. Everyone has a Heather in their life. Its time we protect them. We have a new website under construction, http://www.4heather.com that you soon will be able to electronically sign our petition.
I urge you to check out the site, write your state legislators and make Heather’s Law a reality
Russell Hurd
My name is Russell Hurd and I live in Abingdon Maryland.
Over the Christmas holidays my family an d I traveled to Florida to visit with my daughter Heather who was employed at Walt Disney World. As part of this visit we planned to meet at Disney’s wedding planner to discuss plans for Heathers upcoming wedding. This meeting was scheduled for noon on Jnauray 3, 2008.
At 11;30am, while traveling to meet her mom and I at the wedding planner, stopped at a traffic signal, my Heather and ten other vehicles were hit an d run over by a tractor trailer driver who failed to notice the ten cars stopped at the light. My Heather was killed instantly along with another young woman in a different vehicle. The reason the driver didn’t notice is alleged to have been because he was text messaging when the accident occurred.
Since the accident we have started a letter writing campaign an dpetition drive to make Heathers Law a reality not only in our home state of Maryland but across the nation. Heather’s Law would be a comprehensive ban on hand held cell phones and text messaging while driving except in cases of emergency.
Studies now show that the use of cell phones are as dangerous while driving as DUI. Everyone has a Heather in their life. Its time we protect them. We have a new website under construction, http://www.4heather.com that you soon will be able to electronically sign our petition.
I urge you to check out the site, write your state legislators and make Heather’s Law a reality
Russell Hurd
i think driving while texting (DWT) is worse than DUI. in a DUI at least you’re watching the road. but when you’re texting you’re looking at your blackberry or iphone then SLAM you hit someone at full speed. look what happened in los anageles a couple weeks ago with the train incident.
DWT – Driving While Texting. I just heard of this yesterday and I like the states that enacted the law. I strongly feel that driving and txting don’t mix, and many people’s lives may be in danger. Thanks for the info.
I appreceating from your posting. Sending text messages while driving is wrong. These are causes of accidents. So many damages will be happens if you operating mobiles while driving.
The peoples who are operating mobiles while driving can doing some driving courses, and take some driving lessons from any driving schools.