Texting and driving isn't just a young person's folly.
Last year, a survey by AAA Mid-Atlantic in the Washington area found that more than half of those who drive the Capital Beltway were distracted by cellphone conversations or texts. And while nearly all drivers recognize that reading a text while driving qualifies as a distraction, one in five had copped to recent texting.
"Yes, too many people are talking, texting and driving," National Transportation Safety Board Chairwoman Deborah Hersman said last month — just before calling for a national ban on drivers' nonemergency use of personal electronic devices.
The Safety Board released findings of an accident investigation that showed, among other things, a 19-year-old driver sent or received 11 texts in 11 minutes before he rear-ended a large truck on Interstate 44 near Gray Summit.
The driver, Daniel Schatz of Sullivan, and a school bus passenger were killed in the pileup that the initial wreck set in motion on Aug. 5, 2010.
Missouri state Sen. Robin Wright-Jones, D-St. Louis, and state Rep. Don Wells, R-Cabool, are sponsoring bills in the forthcoming session that will extend the state's ban on texting while driving to motorists of all ages.
The current prohibition targets those age 21 and under.
The AAA Mid-Atlantic survey showed that drivers ages 18-24 were more likely to read or write texts while driving, but 10 percent of drivers ages 45-54 read texts while driving, and 5 percent in that age group had written texts while behind the wheel.
The Safety Board suggested that Missouri's current texting ban is proving difficult to enforce. Only 125 tickets were written the first 25 months the law was on the books.
Texting and driving "is just a recipe for disaster," Wright-Jones told the Ride Guy last week.
Being aware of what's happening around you should be a basic ingredient to driving, she said. And it's not just young people who are spending too much time staring at their hand-held electronic devices.
"We need to get back to the original premise of driving," she said. "Keep your eyes on the road. You cannot do that if you are texting. It's impossible."
Trouble is, when the Safety Board called for a national ban that would take personal electronic devices out of the hands of drivers in nonemergency situations, Missouri lawmakers expressed doubt that such a ban would fly in the Legislature.
They suggested it is up to drivers take more responsibility for their driving habits.
Wright-Jones said she's heard the personal-responsibility argument before when lawmakers have taken up seat belt and motorcycle helmet legislation. She says a texting ban may require more. That's why she introduced the bill — to get the conversation going.
We'll see how far the conversation gets this session on the bills Wright-Jones and Wells have introduced.
OTHER HIGHWAY BILLS
Driving distractions aren't the only topic Missouri lawmakers will take up in the new year. Expect some debate over proposals to charge tolls on Interstate 70 and imposing stiff fines on drivers who camp out in highway passing lanes.
You may recall in November that MoDOT announced that its top legislative priority this year will be to win authority to use a public-private partnership to rebuild I-70. The first step will be persuading lawmakers to give MoDOT authority to do that.
That may require MoDOT to use tolls to finance improvements.
Sen. Dan Brown, R-Rolla, said he came up with the idea for the passing-lane measure, SB517, after hearing from constituents and after making frequent drives on Interstate 44 between Rolla and St. Louis. The bill would impose a $1,500 fine for failing to drive in the right lane except when passing.
Brown said the biggest culprits are generally drivers of large trucks — most independently owned — who drive below the speed limit in the passing lane and car drivers who set their cruise control and camp out there.
Brown said his primary aim is to improve safety. He added that slowpokes in the passing lanes can also spur road rage.
"This problem has gotten much worse in the last three to four years," he said. "We all need a wake-up call. The left lane is for passing. That is what I want to bring attention to. I don't have any hidden agenda here."
Brown sees the $1,500 fine as a deterrent, not as "a big money-maker."
Sure, Missouri is grappling with joblessness and shrinking budgets. That's why it is heartwarming that state Rep. Tony Dugger, R-Hartville, has managed to find time to sponsor a bill designating a stretch of state Highway 5 as the "Missouri Fox Trotting Highway."
Dugger said he introduced the bill at the request of the state Fox Trotting Association, which has its grounds along Highway 5.
