US Police Cracking Down on Distracted Drivers

According to a new federal government report, the police pilot program to crack down on distracted driving is in full effect, as thousands upon thousands of tickets have already been issued. The U.S. Department of Transportation said police in Syracuse, New York wrote 9,587 citations for driver violations involving talking or texting on cell phones behind the wheel in one pilot program. Meanwhile, in Hartford, Connecticut police wrote 9,658 tickets for illegal cell phone use.

"These findings show that strong laws, combined with highly visible police enforcement can significantly reduce dangerous texting and cell phone use behind the wheel," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, who characterized the decline as "dramatic" in the official statement made yesterday.

The two pilot programs cost the federal government $400,000, with the states each chipping in $100,000. The programs were dubbed "Phone in One Hand, Ticket in the Other."

"There was a significant decrease among female drivers but no change for male drivers in the control areas in observed handheld phone use," the reports curiously states. "Texting offenders frequently commit other traffic violations, such as lane departure, traveling too slowly or weaving on high-speed highways, providing additional cues to officers. The report said that the "intent of a high-visibility enforcement campaign is not to issue tickets, but to take advantage of motorists' desire to avoid citations."

"Syracuse law enforcement officers preferred roving patrols and found higher observation locations or taller vehicles like SUVs useful in seeing down into a passenger vehicle to observe texting offenses. Hartford officers found the spotter, or stationary, strategy effective," the report said.

If you don’t live in Hartford or Syracuse, you might think you’re safe, but the program will surely be implemented in your little corner of the country soon enough.