By
Roger Chan’s life was forever changed on
Thanksgiving 2010. The former assistant city manager of Austin was
riding his motorcycle, on his birthday, in front of Austin City Hall
when a distracted driver struck him. The driver was paying so little
attention that he did not stop immediately, and drug Chan along the
road, shearing his leg off.
Now, years later, Chan is a motorcycle safety advocate and champions for stiffer laws to penalize distracted driving.
Current Cell Phone Laws
Effective October 2013, twelve states, along with
D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, prohibit all
drivers from using hand-held cell phones while driving. All laws fall
under primary enforcement, meaning that an officer may cite a driver for
hand-held cell phone use without any other traffic violations taking
place. Currently, no states ban all cell phone use for all drivers, but
thirty-seven states and D.C. ban all cell phone use for novice drivers,
and 20 states and D.C. prohibit use for school bus drivers.
In 2007, Washington was the first state to pass a
texting ban. Now, forty-one states, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S.
Virgin Islands have text messaging bans for all drivers. All but four
have primary enforcement. Six states prohibit texting by novice drivers,
and three states restrict school bus drivers from texting.
Are Tougher Laws Needed?
Distraction from cell phone use claimed 995 lives
in 2009, and injured an additional 448,000 people. These numbers show
just how serious distracted driving is however, penalties for hitting a
motorcyclist with your car while using your cell phone are alarmingly
minimal. In many cases, there is just a small fine or citation, and in
some instances, there is no punishment at all.
On average, texting takes a driver’s eyes off the
road for 4.6 seconds. Traveling at 65mph, a vehicle can cover 438 feet
before the driver would look at the road again.
All of these statistics show that distracted
driving from cell phone usage is a serious problem that needs to be
addressed. Will increasing awareness work? People seem to know it’s
illegal but do it anyway. Would increasing the penalties be the way to
seriously address this issue?
Check out this brutal accident video caused by someone who was distracted which you clearly see at the end of the video.
Motorcycle Accident Attorneys on Your Side
At Russ Brown Motorcycle Attorneys, we understand
how devastating a motorcycle accident can be. That’s why we have
dedicated our entire practice to helping injured motorcyclists obtain
the compensation they need to recover after a devastating accident. To
learn more about our law firm or BAM, our free roadside and legal
assistance program, call us at 1-800-4-BIKERS or visit us on the web at www.russbrown.com. We Ride—We Care—We Win!
