• 25
  • January
    2012

In mid-January, a Coldwell teenager was killed in a car accident likely caused by distracted driving. The teenager rear-ended a semi truck and was then rear-ended by another truck. According to the Idaho State Police, the teen had sent a Facebook message minutes before the Idaho motor vehicle accident.

The teen's uncle is now speaking out against teenage distracted driving, including texting while driving and using social media, such as Facebook, while driving.

Meanwhile, the Idaho Legislature is considering a texting ban. The bill, introduced by Senator Les Bock, D-Boise, would prohibit all drivers from texting while driving unless they are providing emergency services. Violators would be charged $50 for the first infraction and $100 for any subsequent violation. The bill would not prohibit people from dialing numbers or from sending text messages through voice commands.

Why Ban Texting While Driving in Idaho?

According to a recent survey by AAA, 87 percent of voters in Idaho would like to see a texting while driving ban and eight out of ten voters would prefer greater penalties for those who cause Idaho distracted driving accidents. Yet, even though Idaho citizens support a ban on texting while driving, the Idaho Legislature has been slow to act.

Thirty-five states have a ban on texting while driving for all drivers and seven states ban teens from texting while driving. Nine states ban handheld cell phone use all together, requiring drivers who wish to talk on their cell phones to use hands-free devices. Thirty states ban all cell phone use for teenagers. Idaho is indeed behind the times.

The Idaho Department of Transportation estimates that up to 30 percent of car accidents in Idaho are caused by distracted driving involving electronic devices. Texting while driving is a distraction in all senses of the word: cognitive, manual and visual. The National Transportation Safety Board has responded to this growing danger by requesting that all states not only ban texting while driving, but ban non-emergency cell phone use altogether. The federal government could even pull federal road funding if the Idaho Legislature does not pass a ban.

Analysts are saying this is the year that Idaho will ban texting while driving. To do so would mean increasing the safety of Idaho's roads and preventing some of the distracted driving car accidents that cause serious injury and even death.

Source: NWCN.com, "Uncle of Crash Victim Speaks Out About Texting and Driving," Scott Evans, Jan. 17, 2012.