I’ve done it more than once, I’m ashamed to admit.
I’m in my car at a red light. One of those hellishly long red lights, like the one at Pershing and Division. I glance around, and in the rearview. No cops.
So I did it.
I sent a text with my thumb, careful to keep my cell near my gut while the other hand sat on the steering wheel.
Well, fellow lawbreakers, Derby police will be out in force starting Wednesday looking to ticket people like us.
Say What?
A three-week distracted driving crackdown starts in Derby Wednesday (Sept. 3) and continues until Sept. 24.
Derby, where about 1,300 cell-phone-related motor vehicle violations have been issued since 2006, is one of about 24 municipalities in the state to receive part of a $2.3 million distracted driving grant from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
It’s all part of the national “U Drive. U Text. U Pay.” campaign.
Police say the enforcement push is not just to break chops. There appear to be too many distracted drivers crashing cars within city limits.
That didn’t matter much to Valley readers, though. They immediately took to Facebook Tuesday to express their displeasure with the initiative.
It’s hard to get the numbers precisely, because no one tracks “distracted driver” on crash paperwork.
“In Connecticut, we do not have a whole lot of good data about crashes related specifically to mobile phone use. It’s not collected as part of the reports,” said Aaron Swanson, of the state DOT’s Highway Safety Office.
But the state DOT was able to come up with a formula that combined a number of factors that could be connected to distracted driving, such as following too closely, or drifting from the travel lane, in an attempt to see where these crashes might be happening in Connecticut.
The DOT highway safety gurus also looked at fatal and serious injury crashes on all roads in the state between 2008 and 2012, along with crash rates on those roads.
“Those gave us a weighted index, and gave us an idea of where the most crashes were happening,” Swanson said.
In Derby
Those factors are familiar with Valley Indy readers from Derby, where Roosevelt Drive has been the site of numerous head-on wrecks.
Derby PD was the first department approved for the distracted driving program.
Derby police received a $10,875 grant from the state that is being used to fund education and overtime costs connected to this month’s crackdown. The city is matching the grant with $3,625 from local funds, according to the state DOT.
“We’re focusing on texting. People think you can stop at a red light and send a text. You cannot,” Derby Police Chief Gerald Narowski said.
The chief said while the public knows it’s against the law to text or make a cell phone call while driving, people could be in the dark about using a cell while stopped at a light or in traffic.
So the department posted distracted driving info on its website Tuesday, along with links to stats and the precise state law on texting while driving.
Among the morsels on the Derby PD website — distracted driving isn’t just about texting and using your cell while driving.
It also includes:
- Eating and drinking
- Grooming
- Reading, including maps
- Watching a video
So, if you make it a habit to do your makeup while downing a Big Gulp while searching Google maps on your iPhone behind the wheel, take the bus for the next few weeks.
Lt. Justin Stanko said Derby police officers will be stationed at various spots in the city looking for distracted drivers — and issuing tickets to the violators.
With cell phones violations, it’s $150 for the first offense, $300 for the second, and $500 for each subsequent violation.
Yes, it sounds harsh, but Stanko said a period of aggressive enforcement raises awareness to an important safety issue.
Oft-quoted stats in Connecticut say 3,300 people nationwide were killed in 2011 and approximately 387,000 were injured in crashes involving distracted drivers.
Click here for a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which highlights just how dead distracted driving can make you.
The chief said it is especially important for the city’s youngest drivers to be aware of the rules.
Drivers who are 16 years old or 17 years old cannot use a cell phone at any time while at the wheel — even with a hands-free device.
“I want the kids to know they can’t text in a car,” Narowksi said. “They learn it in driver training, but I want to remind them they can’t use a cell phone at all — not hands free, not anything if you’re under 18 years old. The law gives you the opportunity to pull over to the side of the road and park and make a call.”
For more information about national distracted driving issues, visit http://www.distraction.gov/.
While state law bars anyone from using a “hand-held mobile electronic device while operating a motor vehicle,” there are exceptions for certain emergencies, and certain emergency personnel.
