(PIKESVILLE, MD) – While April is designated National Distracted Driver Awareness month, troopers across the state will focus their efforts on distracted driving using intense traffic enforcement initiatives.
Motorists across the state are reminded that April is National Distracted Driver Awareness month. Maryland State Police will be using a combination of traditional and innovative strategies to target motorists who use cell phones illegally while driving. Extra patrols of troopers will be out specifically looking for distracted drivers. This effort is part of a high-visibility enforcement initiative that combines intense enforcement with further educating the public of the dangers of distracted driving. The ultimate goal is to save lives by convincing motorists to obey the law.
“Driver distraction presents a serious and potentially deadly danger to everyone on Maryland roads,” Colonel Marcus L. Brown, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police said. “When motorists text while driving, they take their eyes off the road, hands off the wheel, and mind off the task of driving, which puts everyone’s lives in danger.”
Based on information provided by the Maryland Highway Safety Office, in 2012, 246 people lost their lives on Maryland roads because of a collision where at least one form of distracted driving was noted as a cause. Approximately six percent of observed drivers are using hand held cell phones. This translates into about one out of every seventeen vehicles is being driven by someone using a cell phone.
Drivers are reminded to remove all distractions while driving including any wireless devices. A wireless device is described as a handheld or hands-free device used to access a wireless telephone service or to send or receive electronic messages. The penalty for this violation is a fine not more than $75.00 for the first offense, not more than $125.00 for a second or subsequent offense or not more than $175.00 for a third or subsequent offense. Points may be assessed by the Motor Vehicle Administration if the violation contributes to a motor vehicle crash.
The additional state police patrols coincide with the Maryland Highway Safety Office distracted drivers initiative and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration initiative “U Drive. U Text. U Pay”. Overtime funding for additional patrols is provided by grants from the Maryland Highway Safety Office.
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6 comments:
I thinks it's great. It's just to dangerous. People just don't get it.
While I do think it is a great law as my wife was hit by a woman running a red light because she was on her phone. Thank God she or my daughter were not hurt. But, what about law enforcement themselves. I see them on their cell phones all the time. They are exempt from the law. Are they also exempt from any citation if they cause an accident while they are on their cell phones? The law should apply to ALL people. The department they work for should provide them with hands-free devices like we are required. Many of them have them but had to purchase them on their own. It's a double standard.
how can they focus on distracted drivers when they are distracted themselves by cell phones and computers and then they happen to cause accidents and get out of their cars and jump right to blame the innocent drivers that they are distracted from seeing and run right into. then police officers bosses all they keep telling people is they are specially trained in that behavior...not gotta lot to say but cant say it due to ongoing issue so i will stop there...but people need to quit treating police like they are above and beyond the law themselves
Of course cops are exempt from the law 9:57PM. They are all above the law.., just read the news and you'll see. That's the way it is when you lose freedom under tyranny or a police state.., which is exactly where we are.
I'm waiting for a distracted driver to run over a cop that jumps in the lane of travel to stop a speeder. The cops place themselves into a dangerous spot, but if anything adverse happens because of it, the driver will be charged instead of the idiot cop who jumped in front of their car.
If this happens to anyone, just keep on going. It could be argued that the cop committed suicide.
Maybe they will employ distracted driver checkpoints or better yet, let's just have checkpoints everywhere. Just think of the amount of people you could harass every single day.
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