Learn about what qualifies as distracted driving.
Distracted driving is any activity that diverts attention from driving, including texting, talking on the phone, eating, dancing to music or playing with the radio- essentially anything that gets in the way of focusing on the road. Distracted driving has caused thousands and accidents and fatalities- and sadly, they were all preventable. Learn more about the dangers of distracted driving and why it’s so crucial to give driving 100% of your attention.
Texting and Driving
Texting while driving is a very common form of distracted driving, and is the most alarming distraction. Sending or reading a text requires your eyes and hands, and takes an average of 5 seconds. While this may not seem like much time, when driving at 55 mph, that is the equivalent to driving the length of a football field without looking at the road. Voice activation technology has helped this problem slightly, as people can now send or read texts without taking their hands off the wheel. While this is a better practice, it still takes your focus off of driving and can result in careless mistakes.
What Is The Law?
The laws for distracted driving defer by state, but many State legislatures and governors have made stronger laws against texting, talking on a phone, and various other distractions. In Maryland, distracted driving is one of the state’s most primary concerns. Since distracted driving refers to various actions, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have divided distractions into four categories for Maryland, including Auditory, Visual, Manual, and Cognitive.
Distracted driving fines for first-time offenders is a maximum of $83, while second and third offenses carry fines up to $160. For texting and driving specifically, a crash caused by someone who was texting may result in a fine of $110 and three points on your driving record. Jake’s Law imposes a fine of up to $5,000 and three years in jail if you are responsible for injuring or killing someone while you are using a handheld device to call or text someone.
As you can see, texting and driving is never worth the risk. So many things can go wrong in just a few seconds while on a highway, and driving requires your full attention at all times. So many accidents and fatalities could be prevented if more drivers thought about their actions, and kept distractions away while operating a vehicle.
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