When texting kills, Brits go to prison

Britain has become one of the more aggressive countries in attacking the use of cell phones while driving.
(From The New York Times)

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[deadteck]

I agree with the new law that they just passed, wish there was something like that here in the US.A friend of mine was killed after his motorcycle was hit head on by a 16 yr old who only had her license for a short time and was texting at the moment the accident happened. Tougher laws are really needed.

[sabre3901]

Horrible story and sorry but she deserves jail time! One thing "A40Motorway"? I'm from England and Motorways (Britt version of Interstates) start with a M for example M5 or M1 there is no A40Motorway.

[renGek]

Automakers, instead of putting out pitiful ads begging people to buy their cruddy cars should make some attempts at taking this on as their own initiative. I don't know what the ultimate answer is but maybe something like working with cell phone makers to come up with a standard whereby if the car is moving above 10 mph, texting is disabled, only urgent functions are enabled etc. I can see no reason for texting while the car is in motion. You need to talk to converse with someone urgently while the car is moving well thats what "calling" the person is for via hands free/bluetooth.

Parents are also not doing enough in teaching their kids about driving safety. We've been driving for decades without cellphones and it was ok. Why is it suddenly so urgent to be able to call or text while driving now?

[bluemist9999]

I agree that texting while driving should be a serious crime. Just using a cell phone while driving impairs judgment as much as drinking, even for hands-free models (the conversation is the distracting thing).

But, holding a phone, looking down at it, engaging in a conversation while driving? That has to be far more dangerous. People can upgrade their technology, but we cannot upgrade our brains' ability to multitask.

I think we need laws like this in the US, so if someone kills someone else while texting, they pay for the consequences of their negligence.