Texting Law Has No Teeth
By H. HUGHES
Updated 12:34 PM PST, Wed, Jul 22, 2009
California drivers have a far better chance of getting a ticket for talking on their cell phones then texting while driving, according to California Highway Patrol statistics.
Although more drivers are using wireless headsets these days, CHP wrote more tickets for talking while driving.
Here in San Diego, CHP statistics show that the gap between citations for texting versus talking on your cell is huge. From January 1 to March 17, officers issued 488 cell phone tickets and warnings to San Diego area drivers, versus only eight texting violations.
Statewide, in January alone, officers wrote 9,412 tickets for talking on their cell phones, CHP spokeswoman Fran Clader told The Press Enterprise. There were 131 citations written for texting while driving.
The reason for this disparity? It's a lot harder to spot. Most people usually text from their laps, said San Diego CHP Public Information Officer Brad Baehr, making it nearly impossible to catch.
"It's a lot harder to observe unless it's propped up on the steering wheel or something," said Baehr.
Texting while driving fines start at $20 and go to $50 for repeat offenses.
First Published: Mar 17, 2009 9:50 AM PST
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