South Dakota hasn't gotten around to banning texting while driving. Two attempts at distracted driving laws crashed and burned in the Legislature this season as lawmakers fretted about personal liberties and enforcement. Prospects for distracted driving legislation in South Dakota next session: murky at best. But the state has a PSA. Better than nothing. … [Read more...]
Archives for June 2010
Adults tie teens in texting, driving
June 21, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Adults are just as likely to text message while driving as teenagers, according to a new national survey. "Adults may be the ones sounding the alarm on the dangers of distracted driving, but they don't always set the best example themselves," said Mary Madden of the Pew Research Center. The finding contradicts the widely held belief that texting and driving is primarily a problem with teens. The Pew report on distracted driving does show, however, that young adults (ages 18 to 34) are the most likely to text and drive, by far (59 percent). More than a quarter of U.S. adults (27 … [Read more...]
Titans of texting take pledge, get Sparks tickets
June 17, 2010 by 1 Comment
Here's a new one in the world of distracted-driving safety campaigns: South Florida teens who proved themselves to be superstars of text messaging were awarded free tickets to a concert by "American Idol" star Jordin Sparks. One catch: They had to pledge to never text and drive. The idea for the unusual safety contest came from Stacy Kagan, an Allstate Insurance agent in Coral Springs. "We're trying to encourage teens to be aware that texting kills," Kagan told the Miami Herald. Allstate's "Thumbs Up to X the TXT" has been working its way across the nation since November. First-place … [Read more...]
U.S. Senate panel OKs state incentives
June 10, 2010 by Leave a Comment
A key U.S. Senate panel has signed off on "the Distracted Driving Prevention Act," which would bring $94 million in incentives to states that ban dangerous activities such as texting and cell-phoning while behind the wheel. On June 9, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation approved the driver safety legislation (SB 1938) from Sens. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., and Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas. It now goes to the full Senate. The approval was no surprise since Rockefeller is chairman of the Senate committee and Hutchison is its senior member. Hutchison noted that the … [Read more...]
4 states OK distracted driving laws
June 7, 2010 by 2 Comments
Distracted driving legislation found favor with the governors of Georgia, Connecticut, Vermont and Kansas in recent days. In Georgia, it was drama on deadline for the text messaging and cell phone bills approved by the Legislature. The governor threatened vetoes, citing enforcement issues. "None of this business is black and white," Gov. Sonny Perdue said. Safety advocates, lawmakers and students lobbied furiously in the final days of the legislative session for Perdue to sign the bills, which he did with no time to spare. Georgia's new distracted driving laws take effect July 1. Text … [Read more...]
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