Personal Injury Law

City of Parkland is one step closer to texting while driving ban

By Brian F. LaBovick, Esq.

In the City of Parkland the texting while driving debate is heating up.  On Monday night city commissioners made history when they unanimously approved the ban which would make it illegal to send text messages while driving. Fines for violators could be as much as $100. If approved, this would be the first municipality in Broward County to take such measures for driver safety. A second and final vote will be taken on September 23rd.

A ban on texting while driving is not new. Seventeen states including Maryland, New Jersey and California already have such bans; in California the fine is $20 for the first offense.

A recent survey from Nationwide Insurance shows that nearly 80% of U.S. adults support laws banning text messaging while driving,

The survey of 1,008 Americans, found most were in favor of a texting ban. Surprisingly, this was rated high among young drivers born between 1977 and 1988. 

According to Nationwide associate vice president, Bill Windsor, in a recent WSJ article,

Generation Y's support for driving-while-texting bans — a hot-button topic that has gotten considerable attention in recent weeks — was unexpectedly strong.

Another discrepancy in the texting debate is the contrast of views among drivers from the Northeast and West compared to drivers from the Midwest and the South.

93% of Northeasterners say yes to texting bans, compared with 72% of Southerners — something Mr. Windsors attributes to more congested traffic conditions on the East and West coasts. Drivers in the Northeast and South, however, were the most likely to say they often see other drivers on the phone.

Our message is that safety comes first. The texting while driving debate is going to heat up in Florida.  We look forward to sharing helpful information to readers that will keep our roadways safe. Let us know what you think of the texting while driving ban. We are interested in hearing from our readers on this important topic.

Read the following to lean more on the Texting while driving ban in Parkland and the Nationwide Insurance Survey on Texting while Driving.

Full post as published by LaBovick Injury Law Blog on September 15, 2009 (boomark / email).