A recent article on KSPR.com suggests that despite all of the warnings and acknowledgments that texting while driving is dangerous, teens are still doing it. The article reads as follows:
Several years after a massive national campaign to stop teen texting and driving a new survey says it isn’t working. conducted for state farm, it shows 14 to 17-year-olds are still texting behind the wheel, while admitting its dangerous, even deadly.
In the summer of 2009 it became illegal for anyone 21 and under to text and drive in Missouri. Since the law went into effect the Missouri Highway Patrol has issued more than 130 tickets for the violation state-wide, but teens themselves will tell you that hasn’t fixed the problem.
2:45 p.m. is high school rush hour. Students pour out of Parkview; the goal– get in the car, get on the phone.
Arianna Beckham and Taylor Hulsey sheepishly admit they don’t just talk, they text.
“Every time I get a text,” Beckyham says she replies.
The girls also admit it’s dangerous; they’ve both been on the receiving end of a texting driver’s folly.
“I was a passenger and the person behind us hit us. She was texting,” Hulsey tells us.
“In the school parking lot the third day I started driving at school I got bumped from a guy texting behind me,” Beckham tells us.
Sometimes it’s worse. Car wrecks are the leading cause of teen deaths in Missouri, and inattention is the leading cause of car wrecks. That’s why for years the state highway patrol has been cracking down on teen texting.
“The highway patrol has not only increased enforcement efforts but we’ve gotten into schools,” explains Sergeant Jason Pace.
A new nationwide survey suggests that might not be enough. The results this year are virtually the same as when it was first conducted in 2010.
57% of the teens surveyed say they have texted while driving. 76% say they believe regular texters and drivers will eventually be killed in a car crash, and 93% say regular texters and drivers will eventually have some kind of a car crash, so clearly there is a disconnect.
Still– Pace is convinced the message is translating.
“Some statistics show you’re 23 times more likely to be involved in a traffic crash while using a cell phone or texting and driving so people are understanding that, they are pulling over,” Pace says.
Shelby Martin is pulling over.
“I was raised better,” the Parkview Student tells us.
So are Evan Atwood and his friend and fellow sophomore Darren Busbey.
“I just wait til I get to where I’m going and check it out,” the boys tell us.
As for Beckham and Hulsey– it may take more direct intervention.
“I got pulled over for speeding, so I don’t speed anymore. So if I got pulled over for texting I probably wouldn’t text anymore,” Beckham concludes.
The Missouri Highway Patrol has added a new feature to its online crash reports in 2012. You can now break down the cause of a crash to something as specific as texting, so it will be easier to track those numbers.
37 states and Washington DC ban texting while driving for drivers of all ages. Six states including Missouri have a ban for a specific age group.
Read more: http://articles.kspr.com/2012-04-10/teen-texting_31321327
The attorneys at Strong-Garner-Bauer have seen first hand the life-changing impact texting and driving can have. Texting while driving not only poses a substantial risk to your own life, but also the safety of everyone on the road. The attorneys at Strong-Garner-Bauer, P.C. urge all drivers to be mindful of this and do not text and drive.
If you have been involved in a car accident where someone hit you while texting and driving, please contact the experienced car accident attorneys of Strong-Garner-Bauer, P.C. at 417-887-4300.