Steering away from texting while driving

The day Jacy Good graduated from Muhlenberg College should have been filled with excitement.  Instead, it was a day marked by tragedy.

As Jacy and her parents, Jay and Jean Good, both 58, drove home to Lititz, Pa. after the commencement ceremony, their station wagon was struck by a swerving tractor-trailer. Jacy survived the crash, but was placed in the hospital with a shattered pelvis, collapsed lungs, a lacerated liver, and severe traumatic brain injury. Her parents died on impact. 

Photo: Courtesy of Jacy Good

Jacy Good, left, has been leading an effort tor raise awareness about the risks of texting while driving.

The tractor-trailer swerved to avoid a collision with a minivan that had run a red light. The driver of the minivan, an 18-year-old man, was talking on his cell phone.

Preventing such accidents is the motivation behind the bill signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo on July 12, making texting while driving a primary offense. Now, a driver can be pulled over solely for texting while driving. Before, a driver could be ticketed for texting while driving only if they had been pulled over for another traffic violation.

The bill comes a few months after the end of a campaign tested in Syracuse and Hartford, Conn., to determine if highly publicized enforcement of distracted driving laws would reduce driver cell phone use. With a 32 percent drop in observed driver cell phone use in Syracuse and a 57 percent drop in Hartford, the campaign was labeled a success.  

During the launch of the fourth and final wave of the year-long campaign, named “Phone in One Hand, Ticket in the Other,” said Jacy, 25 and a resident of White Plains, presenting at a press conference in Syracuse in April. She spoke to help raise awareness not just of the new penalties for cell phone use while driving, but the risks. 

“People need to know the stories and see the faces," Jacy said. "Numbers are only numbers and will only take you so far.

"The number one thing that will change it is peer pressure. Just like with drunk driving, it can’t be okay. It can’t be cool.”

New York was the first state to ban the use of cell phones while driving in 2001, but with distracted driving accidents still happening, the government responded with more specific enforcement aimed at texting. Cuomo is also pushing for additional legislation which will increase penalties for violators from two points on their license to three.

However, a report issued by the Governors Highway Safety Association on July 7 found that there is no conclusive evidence that cell phone or texting bans have reduced crashes.

“In our view, it’s pretty early to determine whether the laws are effective or not,” said Barbara Harsha, executive director of the GHSA.  “We do know that texting is extremely risky,” Harsha said, stating the organization recommends distracted driving laws.

Mike Walton, who was involved in the crackdown campaign in Syracuse, acknowledges the limitations of enforcement, but said police catch violators by observing drivers actions.

“We’re paying attention and we see it. But do we always stop the car that’s on their phone? Do we have time to stop the car that’s on their phone?” said Walton, Deputy Sheriff of the Police Division of the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office. “No, we’re busy.  And obviously with the texting they’re always trying to hide it, and obviously it’s harder to see.”

Walton said education has become another tool used by the state in cracking down on the issue. He teaches “Alive at 25,” a nationwide defensive driving course aimed at young adults which covers distracted driving issues. The course is offered at high schools in Baldwinsville and West Genesee, and is required of students wanting a parking permit at Cicero-North Syracuse High School.

The GHSA advocates multiple strategies for tackling the nation’s distracted driving problem, including education and awareness, Harsha said.

Public awareness of the dangers of cell phone use and driving are a key component to adjusting public attitude, according to Jacy.

“I always feel really cliché when I talk about them, but they were just the greatest people,” Jacy said about her parents. “As horrible as it is, I’m thankful that I have a story that I know can change people’s behavior.”

By the numbers

• 5,000 people killed in the U.S. in distracted driving accidents in 2009
• 16 percent of all drivers younger than 20 were involved in fatal crashes due to distracted driving
• 995 people killed in car accidents involving a cell phone in 2009
• Seven states and the District of Columbia enacted hand-held cell phone bans

Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration