California crackdown stings 53,000

California’s monthlong crackdown on distracted drivers — called the nation’s largest campaign against distracted driving — wrapped with more than 53,000 citations written.

The sweep coincided with the first Distracted Driving Awareness Month (April). It involved 103 California Highway Patrol offices and more than 280 local and regional law enforcement agencies.

At the same time, the Office of Traffic Safety reported a 7 percent decline in fatal crashes, although there is no clear link to the distracted driving campaign.

California has had rolling sweeps for several years, almost all of them yielding a large number of tickets and warnings. The statewide distracted driving crackdown was billed as “zero tolerance.” The preliminary report of 52,664 citations in April represents data from about 80 of law agencies.

“This campaign was not about seeing how many citations could be issued,” CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow said. “Law enforcement’s motivation was to change driver behavior and reduce the number of collisions associated with distracted driving.”

Non-scientific surveys and observational studies have estimated that as many as 30 percent of California motorists continue to text and talk on cell phones.

The sticker price on California distracted driving tickets is $20. For subsequent convictions, it’s $50. “With court costs and penalties, the true costs of those tickets are $76 and $190, respectively,” the Los Angeles Times reports.

A plan to more than double these fines is advancing in the state Senate. Its author created the state’s cell phone and text messaging laws for drivers.

The state carries on with the “It’s Not Worth It!” PSA campaign against talking & texting while driving.

Meanwhile, Fairfax County, Va., just reported numbers on its nine-month distracted driving crackdown. The Virginia sweep, which ran concurrent with the school year, yielded about 6,900 tickets, up 50 percent from 2009-2010.

Indiana bans texting, driving

Indiana has become the 32nd state to ban text messaging while driving. The law becomes effective July 1, 2011, with fines up to $500.

Gov. Mitch Daniels signed the texting act into law on May 11.

Specifically, the Indiana distracted driving law prohibits drivers from typing a text message, transmitting the message or reading an electronic mail message. Texting via hands-free or voice-operated technology is allowed.

The law calls for primary enforcement, meaning police can stop and cite violators for that reason alone.

The Indiana texting law has an unusual exemption: communications systems installed in a commercial vehicle weighing more than 10,000 pounds. The law also prohibits police from confiscating telecommunications devices.

Rep. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, pictured, was the legislation’s sponsor.

U.S. Transportation secretary Ray LaHood weighed in after the May 11 signing: “Distraction is still a factor in too many serious crashes. But, the bill signed today by Gov. Daniels will help make Indiana roads safer.”

Drivers under 18 also are prohibited from using cell phones while behind the wheel. The new law essentially expands the ban on teen texting to all drivers.

The Indiana Senate pushed for the original bill (HB 1129) to include a ban on handheld cell phones, but that element was removed in subsequent conference committee negotiations.

That didn’t come as a surprise to State Senator Tom Wyss, R-Fort Wayne, who had predicted the Senate’s addition of a handheld cell phone to HB 1129 would “cause a lot of people to oppose it. The chances of it passing in this manner is pretty slim.”

HB 1129 was approved by the House in an 85-11 vote on Jan. 25 and sent to the Senate. It was amended by the Senate and then approved May 15. The legislation was then rewritten April 26 by a conference committee to remove the Senate’s addition of cell phone ban.

The bill then easily won approval in the House (83-10 vote) but barely got through the Senate (26-24).

Allentown cell phone law tossed

A county judge in Pennsylvania has thrown out Allentown’s local law against using handheld cell phones while driving.

The cases of two drivers ticketed for cell phone use were brought to Judge James Anthony on appeal.

“The (state) legislature can certainly pass a statute specifically covering the use of cell phones while driving, and any other matters concerning distracted driving, but has yet to do so,” Anthony wrote in his opinion. “Until such time, (the city’s cell phone ban) is pre-empted by state law, and is therefore invalid.”

(Update of June 8: Allentown decided not to contest the judge’s ruling, saying: “The city elected not to appeal because it was determined that it would be too costly with no guarantee that we would prevail. It is our hope that the state legislature will take-up the issue and make it a part of the state motor vehicle code to end the debate once and for all.”)

Pennsylvania has no distracted driving laws, and it appears legislation for 2011 will fail to advance, once again.

Allentown’s law was enacted in March 2010, with fines of up to $300. Mayor Ed Pawlowski told the Morning Call newspaper that the city hasn’t decided whether to appeal.

The mayor called the Lehigh County judge’s ruling “unfortunate.”

“What it does is cause a lot of pain and suffering because it will encourage more people to talk on the phone while driving,” Pawlowski said.

If appealed unsuccessfully, the ruling could mean trouble for other cities in the state with distracted driving laws, including Philadelphia, Harrisburg and Erie.

A judge overturned a similar ban in Hilltown Township, Bucks County, in 2000, on the same grounds used by Anthony.

“Other municipalities should beware,” Pawlowski told the Philadelphia News. “This may happen to you. What happens here will reverberate to other municipalities.”

Philadelphia’s ban on handheld cell phones went into effect in 2009, under threat of sanctions from the state legislature. Mayor Mike Nutter went ahead anyway, with his office calling the state DOT policy against individual city driving laws “highly ambiguous.”

Getting ‘The Last Word’ in Miami

Here’s an outstanding video that deals with the emotional aftermath of a father’s death caused by texting while behind it wheel. More of a short film than a PSA, the 4-minute drama takes its time getting to the point, but the payoff is powerful.

The Miami-Dade Expressway Authority paid for “The Last Word,” which was produced by Dade County-based ad agency Ronin Advertising Group. Kudos all around.

The short film anchors an MDX texting-and-driving pledge campaign, with more than 7,800 signees to date. The pledge goal is 1 million signees.

“What we’ve realized is that many of the campaigns out there focus on the driver’s perspective, said MDX’s Cindy Polo-Serantes. “What we’re trying to show is the aftereffect on one’s family.”