Motorists face $20 fine for texting while driving when ban takes effect Wednesday

Hands on the wheel, not the cell phone. In an effort to cut down on distracted driving, the Virginia General Assembly has made it unlawful to either text or e-mail while driving after Wednesday.

Motorists who do so will be violating the law and will face a $20 fine for the first offense and $50 for a second.

There are several exceptions to the law, including emergency vehicle drivers, drivers reporting an emergency or drivers who are parked, according to a Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles news release.

Texting or e-mailing while driving will be a secondary offense, meaning that a law enforcement officer must have stopped or arrested the offending driver for another reason.

Several Danville Communi-ty College students interviewed Friday think the law is a good one.

“I think it’s a good idea because I have friends who text when I am in the car and they aren’t paying attention,” Erin Newton, 20, said. “I call when I’m in the car but don’t text — I’m not coordinated enough.”

She didn’t even have texting on her phone anymore after she racked up a high texting bill and her parents took it off her phone.

Leigh Anne Keatts, 22, has texting on her phone, but doesn’t text while driving.

“Texting while driving is dangerous because you have to look down,” she said. “I usually have the radio on and don’t even hear when I get a text.”

Although Sylvester Beard, 31, sends 10 to 15 texts a day, he doesn’t text while driving.

“Honestly, I think it’s a dangerous issue because you are taking your eyes off the road and you could run off the road or run over someone,” he said.

Danyelle Brim, 23, said she looks at the texts if she gets one while driving but doesn’t respond, even though she has the keypad memorized and can text without looking.

“But I try not to because it distracts you and you can have an accident,” she said.

Sean Boden, 21, also looks at texts he has received while driving — curiosity gets to him, he said — but if he needs to answer, he either waits until he stops or pulls the car over.

“Not texting while driving should be a law for everybody, even talking on the phone should,” he said.

The DMV reports that 28,395 crashes occurred in Virginia last year that involved driver distraction. Of those, 114 people died and 14,480 were injured.

Ignition interlock device

In other new laws involving motorists, the General Assembly tightened the criteria for requiring an ignition interlock device.

Also beginning Wednesday, a motorist convicted of driving while intoxicated for the second time within 10 years must install an ignition interlock system that tests the alcohol concentration on their breath on all the vehicles they own or co-own to obtain restricted driving privileges during the three-year revocation, or full driving privileges at the end of the revocation period, according to the release.

The timeframe used to be five years, not 10.

In a related move, the legislature passed a law explaining the punishments for people who are caught driving without the ignition interlock device when it is ordered by DMV. After Wednesday, violators will be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor and may have their driver’s license revoked for one year. The punishments for conviction of a Class 1 misdemeanor include jail time for up to a year and a fine of up to $2,500.

The General Assembly also passed a law related to traffic safety that affects safety courses for drivers age 55 and older. After Wednesday, crash prevention courses may be offered online to these drivers if the company offering the class is approved by DMV. Insurance companies may allow a reduction in premium charges to drivers 55 and older who successfully complete a crash prevention course via the Internet or other electronic means.

• Contact Elzey at selzey@registerbee.com or (434) 791-7991.