Will This New Law Curb Distracted Driving Accidents?
Beginning September 1, 2017, Texas residents aged 18 and over will be required to complete the “Impact Texas Young Drivers” course to qualify for a driver’s license. The new program comes into effect next month, on the same day a state-wide ban texting while driving comes into force.
Distracted driving endangers the lives of other road users. If you have been injured in an accident because of a distracted driver, you have a legal cause of action. Talk to a Texas auto accident attorney as soon as possible.
The Impact Texas Young Drivers (ITYD)
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, ITYD was established with a goal to save lives through awareness and education. It is a one hour video providing education on the dangers associated with distracted driving. It also features the first-hand accounts of families that have lost significantly because of distracted driving.
The course is designed for people between 18 and 24 years who have finished the current six-hour adult driver education course and people over 25 years, whether or not they have completed the six-hour course.
ITYD is the second phase of the Impact Texas Drivers program launched in 2015. The first phase was the Impact Texas Teen Drivers (ITTD) program which offered a free two-hour educational video on the dangers of distracted driving to teens aged between 15 and 17 years. A third phase “Impact Texas Adult Drivers,” for adults aged above 25 years, will be launched in 2018. Through the programs, DTS intends to reduce the occurrences of road accidents caused by distracted driving.
Is Distracted Driving in Texas that Much of a Problem?
Yes, it is.
According to the Texas Department of Transportation, one in every five road crashes in the state involves distracted driving.
In 2016, there were 109,658 road crashes involving distracted drivers in the state. This was 3% higher than in 2015. The crashes left over 3,000 people seriously injured and 455 dead.
The highest number of crashes was recorded between drivers aged 16 to 34 years.
Texas’ distracted driving prevalence is among the highest in the country. A recent study by Zendrive ranked Texas the 17th highest state with phone-distracted drivers. On average, the state’s drivers spent 3.5 minutes on their phones during an hour-long drive. The worst state was Vermont with 4.4 minutes per hour.
While distracted driving is mostly considered to be using a phone, it also includes other forms of distractions such as:
- Eating
- Browsing
- Reading
- Grooming
- Brushing teeth
- Watching a video
- Programming the GPS
- Tuning the radio
With ITYD set to begin in a week’s time, only time will tell whether the new program will curb the state’s distracted driving menace.
Distracted driving compromises the safety of the driver, passengers and all other road users including pedestrians, motor cyclists and other drivers. If you or someone you know was injured in a road accident because a driver was not paying full attention to the road, you may be eligible for compensation. If you were involved in a car accident, contact our office at 361.LAWYERS (361-529-9377) today for a free initial case consultation.
