Cleveland has become the latest big city to prohibit text messaging by drivers. Meanwhile, Albany County, N.Y., has prohibited texting behind the wheel.
Both bans come in reaction to a perceived lack of action at the state level. Cleveland’s City Council also called on Ohio’s lawmakers to adopt a similar ban on driving and texting.
The lead legislator on the Albany plan, Christopher Higgins, called texting while driving “an epidemic in this country.”
The Cleveland ban takes effect 90 days after the (supportive) mayor signs the legislation. Fines range from $150-$500. The Albany County ban begins Aug. 1 and carries a $150 fine.
The Saratogan newspaper had this to say about Albany’s new texting law: “No one can defend the practice of sending a text message while driving. But making a law with a $150 price tag if convicted will do more to add to the municipalities’ coffers than it will to make the roadways safer.”
