Texting and driving is not a new concern, and it continues to be a topic of concern for law enforcement. I know the temptation is always out there to just send one quick text in the car, so warning against texting and driving is a warning worth overstating. Comments made by North Little Rock Police in the news reports yesterday will hopefully remind drivers in the area of the dangers of texting and driving. Texting and driving definitely increases the number of vehicle accidents each year, although the exact number of texting related accidents in North Little Rock are not known. Besides being dangerous, texting and driving is against the law. Even if you are not speeding or otherwise doing anything illegal, an officer can pull you over for texting and driving. You can be fined for texting and driving but if you kill someone, you could be charged with a felony.
This reminder was prompted by a single car wreck fatality that the police now think was related to texting.
A 23 year old male was dead at the scene of the crash when officers arrived. They reported to the news that it appeared the driver was traveling north and tried to over correct after crossing into the south bound lane. The speed limit in that area is 45 miles per hour which doesn’t seem like a high speed but it only takes a few seconds to travel the distance of an entire football field if you are driving 40 miles per hour!
If you think you can just look down for a few seconds to read a text message or send one, you could make a careless driving mistake with drastic consequences! The U.S. Department of Transportation has information that says your reaction time when using a cellphone is similar to the delay you experience when your blood alcohol content is 0.08, the level after about 4 beers. When you are tempted to text and drive, remember most other people on the road are too. You may think that just a few seconds of glancing at your phone won’t make a difference but a few seconds could save your life or someone else’s.
NEVER TEXT AND DRIVE SO YOU CAN ARRIVE!