One second of distracted driving can lead to injuries, damages, or death. On November 9th, the state of Pennsylvania just passed a law banning texting while driving. The National Safety Council states that this new law could save at least a dozen lives per year in Pennsylvania and prevent 1,2000 serious injuries.
Because text messaging is practically an instinctive act, people don’t realize how distracting and ultimately dangerous it can be. The few seconds that people take to read or compose a text involves diverted attention away from the road. In driving, one wrong move or moment of inattention, whether it’s turning away from the road, merging without looking, or moving forward unexpectedly at a stoplight can lead to a collision. However, people love texting so much that they don’t consider it important.
When 81 percent of U.S. residents said that they have used their cellphone while driving, it becomes a major issue. The National Highway Traffic Safety administration and the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project uncovered these statistics. Out of this percentage of 16 to 17 year olds who have cellphones, 52 percent said they use them while driving. Teens claimed that they texted while driving, to find friends, get directions, and flirt. Pew Report Co-Author Amanda Lenhart said, “Many teens understand the risk behind the wheel, but the desire to stay connected is so strong for teens and their parents that safety sometimes takes a back seat to staying in touch with friends and family.”
Pennsylvania is now the 35th state in the US to ban texting while driving. Part of the law gives police the authority to charge someone caught texting while driving with a primary offense and a $50 fine. In an interview with Rueters, Governor Tom Corbett cited that in 2010 at least 13,790 crashes in Pennsylvania were caused by distracted driving. Approximately 1,100 of those accidents involved drivers using a handheld cell phone, and 66 people died because they were not paying attention to how they were driving.
One method of preventing these devastating casualties is to promote clear messages with No Texting While Driving Signs and Labels. CellPhoneSigns.com promotes signs and labels to curb distracted driving, with graphics that have prohibition symbols over texting pictures. Available as vinyl labels or durable aluminum signs, these signs and labels are designed for resilience and visibility day and night. Signs are an excellent way to complement changing driving laws.
Pennsylvania’s new law will be effective 120 days from its passing in early March of 2012.
