Driving today I was stuck behind two different drivers who were driving under the speed limit and crawling through intersections. Why? One was on a cell phone; the other was putting on makeup. I know it’s tempting to multi-task while driving, but sometimes for the good of humanity we have to resist temptation. Driving can be pretty boring, especially sitting at red lights. If you live any place similar to my neighborhood you will spend the majority of your outing sitting at red lights. It seems like such a wasted amount of time, given our overly busy schedules, so why not make the most of it?
We’ve all heard the stories of tragic teen deaths that were due to distracted driving. A text message of “yeah” being the reason for someone taking their eyes off the road and ultimately ending their life. Despite all the warnings and a few laws to the contrary however, plenty of people will still text and drive. Even those who won’t text while driving will still talk on the phone while driving. Then there are those other non-techie distractions like eating, drinking, shaving, putting on makeup, etc. The list could go on for quite a while. Everyone questions where the line should be drawn in terms of acceptable behavior behind the wheel. Allow me to draw that line now.
Anyone caught driving distractedly (without their hands on the wheel and their eyes on the road) will be ticketed.
That includes everything…yes everything. If you are driving you can’t mess with a phone, a radio, a meal, your makeup, a GPS, … anything. This includes stoppages at red lights. Maybe you can get away with changing the radio station at a red light but that is it. Yes, I know you are just sitting there, but I swear when that light turns green and you don’t move because you are busy with something else I wish I was in a monster truck that could run you over. At this point I’m still allowing talking on the phone if using a hands-free device but I will change my mind if this law doesn’t fix the problems. Consider yourself warned.
You might be cursing me right now saying that you drive just fine while talking on the phone. Let me assure you right now…you don’t. I have seen you drive with a phone up to your ear. You don’t drive just fine. You drive like you’re drunk. You weave between lanes and vary your speed. You slow down for green lights and make turns so slowly I would otherwise guess that your accelerator broke. So put your hands at 10:00 and 2:00, keep your eyes focused on the road, and we won’t have any problems.
This rule might make driving a lot less fun, certainly a lot less productive, but it will save lives and that’s what counts. Consider this, when you do whatever it is you need to do before you put your car in drive, or you pull off the road and park in order to take a phone call or check your GPS you are saving a life. That should be a pretty good feeling and well worth any inconvenience.
As always I remain your all-powerful and benevolent Queen of the World,
Marisa
P.S. Happy Birthday Dad!
I agree that eating, playing with the radio, etc should be grounds for distracted/reckless driving. Anything which takes your concentration off of the road is dangerous. I think allowing people to do whatever they want when the car is stopped might encourage them to wait for a red light insteading of trying to get away with something while moving. If someone isn't ready for a green light, the people behind him have horns and they should use them.
ReplyDelete- Andy