Nevada ignores message on dangerous texting
My habit of text messaging while driving went by the wayside awhile ago, but it wasn’t because I believed I posed a danger to fellow drivers. I just happened to learn the hard way that I wasn’t very good at it.
Attempting to accept my new neighbor’s invitation to a barbecue, my intention was to respond, “I’d love to.” Due to an unfortunate combination of watching the road, typing on an itsy-bitsy keyboard and my phone’s not-so convenient predictive text messaging mechanism, my response read, “I love you.”
Um, awkward? Yes. Worth sending me to death row? I’d hope not.
But that is the penalty one reader believes I should pay, not for professing my love to someone I barely know, but for the act of texting while driving.
“I think it should be a capital crime,” said a woman who asked to remain anonymous. I will respect this request, mostly because she didn’t leave her name.
“I’d support the death penalty for anyone caught texting while driving. And for sure if it causes an accident,” the woman’s voice message said. “It’s not going to happen, but one can hope.”
Well, the caller is correct there; this is not likely to happen. In fact, it’s questionable whether any law targeting our state’s text-happy drivers will come to fruition.
Nevada lawmakers have given this a go for years. At least three bills have been floated and subsequently sunk during legislative sessions.
Opponents of the bills have historically argued that texting laws would be too difficult to enforce and could infringe on motorists’ rights. Lawmakers in other states apparently disagree; 18 states and the District of Columbia have banned text messaging while driving. Nine others have laws that apply to younger motorists,
In Nevada, state Sen. Shirley Breeden’s proposal was the latest to be torpedoed. Breeden suggested that a violation be treated as a minor offense. Motorists with Chatty Kathy fingers would have been fined $20 for the first offense, $50 for the second and $100 for the third.
Nevada Highway Patrol Sgt. Kevin Honea supported Breeden’s law, and as far as having difficulty enforcing it? LOL.
“I’m old and fat and bald, but I’m not stupid,” Honea said. “When you drive, you see people texting. They have the cell propped up on the steering wheel.”
Honea categorized texting while driving as a form of driving under the influence. Drivers are distracted, and in a city where road construction reduces or restricts lanes abruptly, it poses a greater hazard.
“Anything that takes your attention away from driving, you are driving under the influence,” Honea said. “We try to let people realize how badly they’re driving when they’re sending or receiving a text.”
Honea supports a ban on texting while driving, no doubt. How about this woman’s idea to sentence offenders to death?
“That’s, uh, pretty aggressive,” the trooper said.
But our caller eventually mellowed slightly in her opinion: “I’m being a little bit facetious, but I think it’s deadly serious,” she said.
And that is true.
A year ago, 25 commuters were killed and 135 were injured when a train crashed in California while the engineer was texting on his cell phone.
A study performed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration showed that drivers distracted by their cell phones contributed to 636,000 accidents and 2,600 deaths in one year.
Concerns about texting and driving are not limited to the United States. In Great Britain, a controversial public service announcement shows a young female driver so busy text messaging she doesn’t realize she is drifting into oncoming traffic. The television spot is so graphic, YouTube flagged it as unsuitable for young viewers.
The Nevada Highway Patrol doesn’t keep statistics on the number of accidents caused by texting, because sending texts is not a citable offense. Officers will subpoena cell phone records if an accident results in fatalities or serious injuries, Honea said. Nevada statistics on those more serious accidents involving texting weren’t immediately available.
Honea is not alone in his support of some kind of legislation. AAA spokesman Michael Geeser said his agency has lobbied lawmakers to no avail. He too has a difficult time buying the argument the law would be tough to enforce and therefore ineffective.
“Public policy creating a law has to be done with the intent that most people are going to follow it,” Geeser said. “I do believe if you create a law, even if it says you can’t text, most law-abiding citizens will follow the law.”
Which motorists might be most likely to violate such a law could come as a surprise.
“It’s the professional people who have learned to rely on cell phones and the ability to receive e-mails on their cell phones on their way to work or between appointments,” Honea said. “We don’t have a real big teen problem.”
If you have a question, tip or tirade, call the Road Warrior at 387-2904, or e-mail her at roadwarrior@reviewjournal.com or apacker@reviewjournal.com. Please include your phone number.
All sorts of on and offramp closures along U.S. Highway 95 are scheduled for the upcoming week. All of the closures will take place during overnight hours, between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. Here’s the list of closures:This evening: the Casino Center Drive northbound onramp and the Las Vegas Boulevard southbound on and offramps.
On Monday: the southbound Casino Center offramp and the Las Vegas Boulevard northbound on and offramps.
On Tuesday: the Eastern Avenue southbound onramp and offramp.
On Wednesday: the Eastern Avenue northbound onramp and offramp and the Charleston Boulevard southbound on and offramps.
On Thursday: the Charleston northbound onramp an offramp and the Boulder Highway southbound on and offramps.
Beginning Monday, Oakey Boulevard will be closed to westbound traffic between Western Avenue and Rancho Drive from 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily. This closure will remain in effect until further notice as crews install concrete flood control boxes. At Western, traffic will be detoured to northbound Wall Street to Martin Luther King Boulevard to Charleston Boulevard. The alternate route to the south is from Western to Scotland Lane to Highland Drive to Sahara Avenue to Rancho.
Eastbound traffic on Oakey will be reduced to one lane.
Also beginning Monday, crews will be installing and upgrading the power infrastructure on Main and First streets. The work will take place on Main between Boulder and Clark avenues and on First Street between Coolidge Street and Gass Avenue. Crews also will be working on Coolidge and Gass between Main and First; and west of Main near Clark all the way to the Las Vegas Symphony Park development site.
During construction, which will occur day and night, Main will narrow to one lane in each direction, which means on-street parking in work zones will be temporarily unavailable.
This $1.5 million project is expected to be completed in March 2010.
The Casino Center Boulevard and Bonneville Avenue intersection will be closed to traffic through 5 a.m. Monday as crews work on a section of the ACE rapid transit project.
Las Vegas Review-Journal
