Illinois will become the 17th state on Thursday to ban texting while driving, a safety worry that has caught the attention of the federal government.

Gov. Pat Quinn will sign an amendment to the Illinois Vehicle Code that prohibits writing, sending or receiving text messages while driving, said the governor's spokeswoman, Marlena Jentz. The bill does make texting exceptions for drivers who pull over to text or shift their car into park or neutral to message while stopped in traffic.

Illinois will join a growing list of states looking to curb accidents linked to texting. Oregon and New Hampshire banned texting drivers in July, and Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington and the District of Columbia already have laws in place. Four U.S. senators announced their plan to push for a federal ban on July 29. U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the Obama administration will convene a summit to discuss how it can end accidents caused by distracted drivers.

Despite the ongoing efforts to address the dangers of texting while driving, studies have not shown whether the laws affect accident rates, said Jonathan Adkins, communications director at the Governor's Highway Safety Association.

The nonprofit association comprised of appointees from each state's governor's office has closely followed the texting while driving saga. But Adkins said that because of several factors that potentially play a role in an accident, to know whether texting caused an accident would require a subpoena or an admission by the driver.

In New York and New Jersey, the impact has been measured by an increase in driving tickets, but too few states track that data, Adkins said.

"With drunk driving it was important to pass tough laws, but the laws won't really have any effect unless they're enforced and the public knows about it and it's properly adjudicated," said Barbara Harsha the association executive director. "So passing a law isn't the solution, it's only part of it."

Studies have shown that those who text while driving have an exponentially greater risk of an accident or near accident.

A Virginia Tech Transportation Institute study found that truck drivers who texted while driving were 23 times more likely to crash or nearly get into wrecks than undistracted drivers.

Compared with dialing, talking, listening or reaching for an electronic device, texting posed the greatest accident risk, the study found -- most likely due to the almost five seconds researchers found the drivers' eyes were off the roadway while texting, said Rich Hanowski, the director of the Center for Truck and Bus Safety at the transportation institute.

The focus on texting while driving comes after a some high-profile accidents.

In September, a California commuter train engineer missed a stop signal while trading text messages with a friend, leading to a collision with a freight train that killed 25 people, according to federal investigators.

A mass-transit accident in Boston, Massachusetts, injured 62 people in May. The operator of a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority trolley was later charged with gross negligence after he admitted he had been texting seconds before the collision with another trolley, according to the Suffolk County district attorney and a National Transportation Safety Board official.

Yes. I don't know how to enforce it, though. All cell phone use should be banned for drivers.

Yes. I don't know how to enforce it, though. All cell phone use should be banned for drivers.

I can text/IM and drive just fine

I can text/IM and drive just fine

I do not support laws like this. It's unenforceable, and there are already laws covering reckless driving and whatnot. Yes, texting while driving is stupid and dangerous. Conveniently, people who do stupid and dangerous things tend to take themselves out eventually.

I do not support laws like this. It's unenforceable, and there are already laws covering reckless driving and whatnot. Yes, texting while driving is stupid and dangerous. Conveniently, people who do stupid and dangerous things tend to take themselves out eventually. Further, if you're too stupid and irresponsible to realize that trying type messages into your cellphone while driving, what reason is there to think that you're responsible enough and informed enough to follow a newly passed law that's basically unenforceable?

I dont support it, its unconstitutional. Where is it going to end next? I've already heard murmurs of laws going through California where you can't use bluetooth. What's next, no smoking in cars? It's invasion of privacy.

I dont support it, its unconstitutional. Where is it going to end next? I've already heard murmurs of laws going through California where you can't use bluetooth. What's next, no smoking in cars? It's invasion of privacy.

Apparently neither can the New York State troopers. Texting while driving is now illegal in this state, but they can't pull you over for it. Brilliant.

I do not support laws like this. It's unenforceable,

I dont support it, its unconstitutional. Where is it going to end next? I've already heard murmurs of laws going through California where you can't use bluetooth. What's next, no smoking in cars? It's invasion of privacy.

Do you support drinking and driving as well?

You might be right that its unenforceable properly on a realistic level but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be against the law to do so.

In Canada, I have a counterargument - since we have public health care, our health care dollars pay to fix people who mess themselves up in car accidents, therefore, seat belt laws can equal less taxes when they equal less damage to people involved in accidents, and we all pay enough taxes already. (and yes, there are cases where some people survive with injuries instead of just dying out right, which is more expensive to the system, but as a whole I think it stands).

This probably belongs in P&R.


I don't support texting while driving: it is stupid and dangerous, and people should not do things which are either. I oppose making it illegal, because the resulting statute would be next to impossible to enforce and the behavior could be lumped under existing reckless driving laws without requiring extra legal action. These are two different things, and it is a mistake to conflate them.


An unenforceable law is, at best, a waste of taxpayer money on the part of legislature that passed it. It increases the size of the legal code, and, if poorly written, can potentially offer new ways to be arrested for reasonable behavior. It is, at best, a law with no force or impact whatever. What you propose is that we do something, even if it costs more and nets, practically, the same result as doing nothing.

Whereas doing nothing costs nothing, harms no-one, and does not result in an additional law being thrown on the books.

I dont support it, its unconstitutional. Where is it going to end next? I've already heard murmurs of laws going through California where you can't use bluetooth. What's next, no smoking in cars? It's invasion of privacy.

I don't support texting while driving: it is stupid and dangerous, and people should not do things which are either. I oppose making it illegal, because the resulting statute would be next to impossible to enforce and the behavior could be lumped under existing reckless driving laws without requiring extra legal action. These are two different things, and it is a mistake to conflate them.

An unenforceable law is, at best, a waste of taxpayer money on the part of legislature that passed it. It increases the size of the legal code, and, if poorly written, can potentially offer new ways to be arrested for reasonable behavior. It is, at best, a law with no force or impact whatever. What you propose is that we do something, even if it costs more and nets, practically, the same result as doing nothing.

Whereas doing nothing costs nothing, harms no-one, and does not result in an additional law being thrown on the books.

If/when we get public health care in America, my stance might change. Right now, though, I remain against them.

Gov. Pat Quinn will sign an amendment to the Illinois Vehicle Code that prohibits writing, sending or receiving text messages while driving, said the governor's spokeswoman, Marlena Jentz. The bill does make texting exceptions for drivers who pull over to text or shift their car into park or neutral to message while stopped in traffic.

It's unenforceable, and there are already laws covering reckless driving and whatnot. Yes, texting while driving is stupid and dangerous.

Do you support drinking and driving as well?

Just another excuse for cops to pull you over because they feel like it. I do not support.

God damn illinois. Can't smoke inside. Can't text while driving. Can't buy fireworks.

Fair enough. Without a seat belt, you have a much higher risk of being ejected from the vehicle. As such, you can find yourself being catapulted out your windshield, and through the windshield of the person you've crashed in to, further injuring them, or potentially being launched into innocent bystanders.

The seat belt reduces the risk you play as a projectile in case of an accident, and as such reduces the chances of injury to others. And incidentally can save your life as well, but that's obviously not what's important here.

I'm for banning cell phone use while driving as well. While I'm aware that it's possible to use a hands free model to make it so your physical attention is on driving, the problem can also be the conversation your having distracting your attention. Admittedly this is also possible when you have a passenger, but at least in that case that passenger would presumably be interested enough in their personal health to avoid distracting the driver dangerously, but someone on the other end of a phone line doesn't have that prerogative.

I feel this is a good step, though it will be difficult to enforce. The best thing to do is make it an offense that someone can be pulled over for and make the fines prohibitive. It won't stop it altogether but it would at least be a good deterrent.

Tonight I drove with the window rolled down and my arm hanging out the window. In the other hand I was texting on my cell phone while I talked on my other phone, cradled on my shoulder.

Tonight I drove with the window rolled down and my arm hanging out the window. In the other hand I was texting on my cell phone while I talked on my other phone, cradled on my shoulder.