National opposition to texting behind the wheel grows as more states adopt bans

Missouri and Illinois have joined a growing number of states to ban texting behind the wheel as part of a movement that is gaining momentum across the nation because of the deadly risks associated with the practice.

Missouri’s law, which prohibits individuals 21 and under from sending or reading a text message while driving, took effect at the end of August. The law in Illinois, which takes effect on Jan. 1, 2010, bans text messaging for all motorists.

“With the increased use of technological devices, distracted driving has become a serious problem in our state and in the nation,” said Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White, who proposed the texting ban in Illinois. “No driver has any business text messaging while they are driving.”

Sen. Ryan McKenna, D-Crystal City, introduced a bill in Missouri to make texting illegal for all motorists, but in committee hearings it was altered so it only addresses younger drivers.

McKenna plans to introduce a bill in 2010 to ban texting for all drivers. “This distraction is no less deadly based on age, and I truly believe my original provision would have worked best to make Missouri roads safer,” he said.

In all, 18 states ban texting for all drivers and 10 prohibit it for novice drivers. Indiana’s law prohibits drivers younger than 18 from texting, and a Kansas law takes effect in January banning all cell phone use for drivers with an instructional or restricted license.

Texting bans surely will continue with AAA’s launching this fall of a nationwide campaign to prohibit texting while driving in all 50 states by 2013. AAA will lobby to pass laws in states that lack them and to improve existing laws.

“Research has proved that texting behind the wheel is a real risk to all road users, and an overwhelming majority of the public supports the enactment of a ban,” said Mike Right, vice president of AAA’s Public Affairs department.

The need for the bans is evident in a study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, which indicated tasks that draw the driver’s eyes away from the road cause the highest risk.

In the study, the institute outfitted the cabs of long-haul trucks with video cameras and found the crash risk of dialing a cell phone was almost six times as high as for non-distracted driving. Text messaging, however, eclipsed all distractions with a collision risk 23 times greater than when not texting.

Other research has found that driver texting bans can be effective. Before California enacted its ban last January, Automobile Club of Southern California researchers observed 1.4 percent of drivers at any point in time in Orange County were texting. Following the law taking effect, just .4 percent of drivers were seen texting, a decline of about 70 percent.

Few seniors aware of effects of medications on driving

While prescription medications are vital to maintaining health for many seniors, most older drivers are unaware of the impact of their medications on their performance behind the wheel, according to a new AAA study.

In the study, performed by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 95 percent of respondents 55 and older said they have one or more medical conditions and 78 percent said they use one or more medications. Yet only 28 percent indicated some awareness of the potential effect on their driving associated with those medications.

Surprisingly, the study found that few respondents (18 percent) had received a warning about potentially driver-impairing medications–such as ACE inhibitors, sedatives and beta blockers–from a healthcare professional. Some side effects of beta blockers, for instance, can include dizziness and confusion.

Further, the study found that warnings about the effects of medications on driving from health care professionals do not increase with increasing numbers of medications or with increasing numbers of medical conditions.

The lack of warnings is particularly alarming because previous research indicates that use of a single potentially driver-impairing medication increases the risk of being in a crash.

The age range in the study was from 56 to 93, and the level of awareness of potentially driver-impairing medications decreased with age. In contrast, the number of prescription medications people were taking increased with age. Of those surveyed, 69 percent use one or more prescription medications that could impair driving, and 10 percent use five or more.

The number of drivers 55 and older is expected to rise by more than half by 2030, so the urgency of the issue will continue to increase.