Letter: R.I. needs to pass the distracted driving bill

Posted 5/30/17

To the editor:

Congratulations to the three girls from Cottage Avenue who successfully petitioned the Portsmouth Town Council to improve traffic safety on their street! 

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Letter: R.I. needs to pass the distracted driving bill

Posted

To the editor:

Congratulations to the three girls from Cottage Avenue who successfully petitioned the Portsmouth Town Council to improve traffic safety on their street! 

As remaining time grows short for the 2017 session at the State House, another traffic safety issue, the distracted driving bill, is again being held up in the R.I. House of Representatives by Speaker Mattiello. 

The bill (H 5182), similar to one originally submitted in 2001, bans common forms of distracted driving. Although we do have a law which bans texting while driving, it is difficult to enforce because it is almost impossible to determine if a handheld device is being used for texting, dialing, posting or checking social media. The bill would ban all handheld devices except in cases of emergency, but would not go into effect for one year after passage, to give drivers time to change to hands-free devices.

Construction projects underway on both the Pell and Mt. Hope bridges, and the continuing congestion on East Main Road which leaves little margin for error, only increase the dangers of distracted driving, so this would seem to be a good time to call Speaker Mattiello (401/222-2466) and ask him to finally advance the bill. 

The bill has passed easily in the Senate for many years, only to get “held for further study” each year in the House, year after year.

Some of those who have testified in the support of the bill are the R.I. State Police, the R.I. Police Chiefs Association, The R.I. Medical Society, DOT, R.I. Bike Coalition, the Attorney General’s Office, AAA Northeast and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).

Nearby states have already passed similar bills: New Hampshire (2015), Vermont (2014) and Connecticut (2005). 

What are we waiting for?

Judith A. Byrnes

Newport

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