A ban on text messaging while behind the wheel of a car in Indiana could be in the works, according to a number of insiders who spoke to the Lafayette Journal and Courier newspaper.
The trend toward tougher auto safety laws in the state has been apparent for some time, the Journal Courier reports. Legislators tried to upgrade requirements in 2008 for teenagers trying to get licensed, and a provision which would have banned all cell phone use behind the wheel was part of the bill.
However, AAA Hoosier Motor Club public affairs manager Greg Seiter told the newspaper the focus on teenagers being unsafe is misguided, since the dangers of distracted driving affect motorists of all ages. Seiter added that, ideally, the next bill to begin making its way through the state's legislature would impose a blanket ban on the practice of texting behind the wheel.
West Lafayette Police Lieutenant Gary Sparger concurred with Seiter's analysis of the problem, telling the Journal and Courier he had seen numerous distracted driving crashes in recent years but that the issue of cell phone use on the road was not a problem confined to teenagers.
"I actually see more people over 18 than under 18 doing it," Sparger told the newspaper.
Though some – like Indiana state Representative Randy Truitt – raise the issue of enforcement with any potential texting ban, most of the sources in the Journal and Courier's article predicted another attempt to pass such legislation soon.
The number of U.S. states banning texting behind the wheel has increased sharply in recent months, with the human and financial cost of distracted driving accidents being felt by families and auto insurance companies alike serving as a spur to regulatory action.