Have you ever been a passenger in a vehicle with someone who was texting and driving? Stephen Walling, owner of Golden Crown Driving School in White Plains, says this is a question he frequently asks unlicensed students during their mandatory five-hour course. "Usually about half the class raises their hand. Many students tell me they were scared," Walling said. "I think young people are aware of the dangers." But being aware of the dangers isn't always a deterrent to engaging in distracted driving. "I get a good number of people telling me that they can text without looking at their phone, …

In the waning days of this year's legislative session, state lawmakers are stepping up a push to steepen the penalties for texting while driving, and even Gov. Andrew Cuomo has entered the fray. The Senate and Assembly on Tuesday passed a bill that would make texting while driving—as well as using an iPad, laptop or other electronic device—a primary offense punishable by a fine of up to $150. Currently, such violations are only secondary offenses, meaning a driver must be stopped for another reason, such as speeding, in order to be given a ticket. Last week, Cuomo announced plans to introduce…

You may have seen—and laughed at—the Youtube meme of a woman falling into a fountain in a Pennsylvania shopping mall while texting. But as hilarious as this is in the context of an indoor facility, it is part of a more dangerous phenomenon known as distracted walking.  According to an Ohio State University study, a little more than 1,000 pedestrians visited emergency rooms in 2008 because of distracted-walking accidents. This was double the number of emergency room visits from 2007, which also had doubled from 2006. Moreover, half of the people who were injured were under 30-years old—a …

From the time I understood the purpose of a car, I have been waiting for my chance to drive one.  So finally, after years of waiting, I was overjoyed to get to stand outside of the DMV in the rain on my 16th birthday anxiously waiting to receive my permit.  Finally, after about two hours at the DMV, I was allowed to drive. I clearly remember stepping into the car with my dad, turning it on and allowing it to coast, only to become paralyzed with fear, unable to press the gas or turn the wheel. You see, I have always been one to need constant control, and maneuvering a huge piece of machinery …

We were driving through western New Jersey at the start of our spring-break road trip when we ran into one of those mysterious traffic back-ups in the middle of nowhere. We inched along for miles, stopping and starting, until suddenly, on a hill, the car in front of us started to roll backwards. Maybe the car was in neutral. Maybe it was a stick shift and the driver had the clutch in. The car rolled closer to us. The man behind the wheel had his head down. And then, just as I was about to blast him with my horn, he looked up and braked. I switched lanes, and as we pulled up next to him, his …

Stay alive: don’t drink or text and drive. It’s an old message with a 21st century twist, and with chilling statistics about the consequences of distracted driving, awareness efforts that have traditionally been focused on drunk driving are now being steered toward this new issue.  According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the use of a cell phone while driving equates to having a .08 blood alcohol content, and some studies suggest texting “LOL” behind the wheel may be more a threat than a bottle. After all, a road seen through beer goggles is still visible—which can’t be said when …

Distracted driving is a large, growing, and complicated behavioral problem. Trust me, I know from experience. You see, it was September 2008 and I was headed to work one day. As I pulled out of my driveway, I received a text. While driving down the road, I did what everyone would do—I took a quick peek and typed a quick reply. The funny thing is that I don’t even remember what the message was about, but I vividly recall what happened next.  A blur passed from left to right across the front of my car. It was a 9-year old boy riding his bike. I slammed on my brakes and watched, in horrifyingly …

Distracted driving is nothing new. People have been rubbernecking, applying makeup and searching for their favorite song on the radio since, presumably, the dawn of the automobile era. But the rise of cell-phone use—particularly text messaging—to ubiquity over the last decade has significantly increased the prevalence of distracted driving and has led to an uptick in accidents that result from drivers taking their eyes off the road, according to numerous studies. A study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute found a driver is 23 times more likely to be involved in an accident while …

In April, Patch sites in the Hudson Valley launched a "No Texting While Driving Campaign." The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness about distracted driving, to educate the public about the dangers of this behavior and to encourage motorists to put their cell phones away when they are behind the wheel. Because this issue is so important, Patch also has created a list of tips for drivers to ensure that they aren't distracted when they are on the road. Here are Patch's tips to becoming a safer driver: 7 Tips for Driving Undistracted Keep the phone out of arms reach. Put it in your glove …

Being a relatively new driver, I find myself getting nervous at certain times behind the wheel. I myself have been in a car accident when no phone use, drinking, drugs or other distractions were involved. My drivers' education instructor told me that being in a car is the most dangerous thing he does every day. The fact that people of all ages increase the risk of an accident by texting and driving is astounding to me. I do admit that before my accident, I did text and drive a few times, but I promised myself that I would never do it again, out of fear and out of realization. The idea to …

When I think of distracted driving, I think about cell phones and, unfortunately, the youth of today.   As I was driving around Brewster the past few days, I've watched drivers behind the wheel and wondered what are they doing in their vehicles. I would be at a stop sign or traffic light and observe what the driver would do in those few seconds before the light turned green. I’d often see the driver moving his or her lips to the lyrics of a favorite song, deep in thought going through a “to do” list or chatting with a passenger.   But mostly I would observe people picking up their cell to …

Have you ever texted while driving? If so, you’re not alone. According to a recent study from the Pew Research Center, as many as 1 out of 4 adults said they have sent a text while behind the wheel, the same as driving-age teenagers. And at any given moment, more than 800,000 Americans are texting, making calls, or using a handheld device while driving. This is all despite the fact that drivers who text are 23 times more likely to be involved in a car crash than non-distracted drivers, according to the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI). According to Village of Mamaroneck (VOM) …

Jacy Good had the world in the palm of her hand when she graduated from Muhlenberg College, in Allentown, Penn., on May 18, 2008. She graduated magna cum laude with Phi Beta Kappa honors and was about to start her dream job at Habitat for Humanity.A distracted driver destroyed what was supposed to be one of the best days of her life.While talking on his cell phone, a young man ran a red light, causing an accident that also involved a tractor trailer and Good’s car. Good’s mother and father —Jean and Jay Good—were pronounced dead when paramedics arrived. Good, now a 24-year-old White Plains …

I’m guilty.  I’ll be the first to admit it. In fact, I’ve done it more than once.  I’ve returned that phone call from the car that I forgot about. I've picked up my Blackberry at a stoplight to see if there’s an urgent email that has to be returned within 35 seconds.   And, I also know that I should know better.  Distracted driving has become an epidemic in the U.S., causing almost 6,000 car crash related deaths in 2009.  And that number is probably low because many states are just starting to note whether cell phones were part of the cause of an accident.  Today, 16 people will lose their …