April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) kicked things off this year by launching a new initiative. The motto for this national advertising campaign is “U Drive. U Text. U Pay.”
The campaign hopes to increase awareness of the dangers of distracted driving. It also hopes to bring attention to law enforcement’s efforts to crack down on those caught texting and driving. Digital, television and radio ads will run from April 7 to 15, thereby putting drivers on notice that there will be penalties for texting while driving.
There will also be a distracted driving high-visibility enforcement (HVE) crackdown from April 10 to 15. Law enforcement across the nation will be using a variety of tactics to catch offenders.
The success of two previous campaigns in California and Delaware, “Phone in One Hand. Ticket in the Other” is the driving force behind this new national effort to reduce unsafe behavior behind the wheel. Another national campaign, “Click It or Ticket,” was successful improving seatbelt use.
The ads will also serve as a reminder of the fatal consequences of texting while driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports distraction-related accidents injured approximately 421,000 people and killed 3,328 in 2012.
What to Do if Injuries or Death Was the Result of Distracted Driving
Forty-three states currently have distracted driving laws in place. New York is one of them. It has both a handheld ban and a texting ban for all drivers. If accident victims can prove texting or cell phone use caused the accident, it could help to build a strong case against the negligent driver. Seek legal advice from Gacovino, Lake & Associates at 800-550-0000 to set up a consultation.
