Last month, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced a model law that is intended to make it easier for states to craft laws that prohibit texting while driving.
Approximately, 19 states have already passed such laws and several employers have implemented policies that prohibit employees from texting while driving. For example, in October 2009, President Obama issued an executive order prohibiting federal employees from texting while driving in the course of their employment. The Department of Transportation has also issued rules that prohibit drivers of trucks and commercial vehicles to stop texting or face significant financial penalties.
The model law would allow police officers to pull over drivers who are texting while driving and issue a ticket. Drivers who are in accidents while they are texting may already be found liable for negligence if serious injuries or fatalities resulted from their texting. Texting is considered to be an especially dangerous form of distracted driving because it involves taking your eyes off the road, your hands off the steering wheel, and your mind off of the potential hazards in front of you. Texting is a popular, and frequent, form of communication for people under 20 who are relatively new and inexperienced drivers. The combination of these factors makes texting while driving a serious concern nationwide and right here in Pennsylvania.
NHTSA estimates that 6,000 people died and more than half a million people were injured in 2008 because of distracted drivers, including drivers who texted while driving.
PA Law Prohibiting Texting While Driving
Pennsylvania is currently considering a law that would ban texting while driving. While it is a move in the right direction, it is likely that texting while driving will continue despite any new laws, and that, unfortunately, people will continue to be hurt and killed.
If you have been hurt, or lost a loved one, because of a driver who was texting while driving or who was otherwise distracted from driving safely then please contact a Pennsylvania car accident attorney for help recovering the damages to which you may be entitled under Pennsylvania law.
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