Texting and driving is often associated as a dangerous habit of teenagers, but adults are guilty of it too. In fact, a survey by AT&T found that while 98% of adults know it isn’t safe to text and drive, a staggering 49% of them do it anyway. This past December a Tennessee school bus driver used his cellphone while driving and swerved into oncoming traffic, hitting another school bus. One adult and two children were killed as a result. It was later discovered that the driver was both sending and reading text messages moments before the accident. Wrongful death lawsuits are now being filed by the victims’ families.
Recent studies show that the average person takes their eyes off the road for about 5 seconds to send or read a text. The safest amount of time for a driver to glance away from the road is 2 seconds, if at all. In the U.S., 46 states, as well as Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, texting while driving is banned regardless of age. According to Psychologist David Greenfield, the founder of Center for Internet and Technology Addiction, public awareness isn’t enough to stop texting and driving and harsher laws are needed. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) also agree with this, giving an air of anger and exasperation. Both argue that when stricter laws were put in place, the number of drunk driving fatalities went down. They also agree that the same can be accomplished with stricter texting and driving laws.
If you or someone you know has been injured in an accident with a distracted driver, contact an attorney at Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner by calling (713) 222-7211 or toll free at 713-222-7211.