Anyone on the roads today who does not realize distracted driving is a problem is probably distracted.
Motorists who do not drive while talking on a hand-held phone are in the minority. Besides being at risk of being hit and worse by a distracted driver who never even saw them, their hands-free vigilance allows them to see people who, while driving and talking on a hand-held phone, often will characteristically drive irrationally, drifting in and out of lanes and slowing down to 5 mph, then speeding up to 15 mph, then tapping the brakes, even though there are no obstructions in the road.
Pedestrians who are not navigating crosswalks while preoccupied with their phones themselves can see distracted motorists hurtling down on them in crosswalks, not even looking up.
It is crazy, selfish, destructive behavior; and on behalf of all motorists and pedestrians who are not trying and failing to prove they can multi-task, we would like it to stop. Yesterday.
We are not crazy about the so-called nanny state, but sometimes a nanny is what we need to take care of people who subscribe to solipsism, the doctrine that only the self exists. This is just why we have laws.
So we are glad to see a bill has been introduced at the outset of this new session of the Colorado Legislature, “Concerning a limitation on the use of mobile electronic devices while driving.” It is sponsored by Rep. Dylan Roberts, a Democrat from Avon; a similar state Senate bill was introduced in the last session but failed to get Republican support.
Distracted driving is not and should not be a partisan issue, so we look forward to Republicans taking it more seriously this time around. It provides for fines ranging from $50 to $300 for talking or texting on a hand-held device while driving.
