Every Los Angeles car accident lawyer knows by now that it’s not easy to separate a teenage motorist from his cell phone while he is driving. Federal transportation authorities are aware of this too, which is why they should find the results of a new survey very interesting. The survey finds that nothing short of personal involvement in an accident, or a friend or loved one being involved in an accident caused by texting while driving, can induce teenage motorists to switch off their cell phones while driving.
That’s a shocking finding, and a depressing one, but it is not exactly surprising to a Los Angeles car accident attorney. Teenage motorists are notoriously resistant to messages that encourage them to give up texting while driving or the use of hand-held cell phones while driving. Teenagers are addicted to texting, and the average teen sends more than 3,300 texts per month. That’s a lot of time that a teenager spends texting, and unfortunately, a lot of that time is spent when he’s behind the wheel.
Teenage drivers are already at a much higher risk of accidents because of their inexperience, lack of skills and impulsiveness, and texting while driving simply adds to those risks. The study involving teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18, finds that next to being involved in a crash or knowing someone involved in a crash, tougher penalties for texting while driving can help encourage teens to stop such practices.
Stronger police enforcement of laws that ban teenagers from texting while driving can also motivate them to stop this deadly practice, with approximately 80 percent of the teenagers saying that this would help motivate them to stop texting while driving. Stronger penalties in the form of stiffer fines can also be a great motivator.
