No texting while driving law goes into effect TODAY
That’s right, folks. As of today you are officially no longer allowed to text (or email, or Tweet) while operating a motor vehicle. If caught doing so, you can be fined $20 for the first offense, while subsequent offenses will cost you $50. Here’s a snippet of the new law: It shall be unlawful for […]
That’s right, folks. As of today you are officially no longer allowed to text (or email, or Tweet) while operating a motor vehicle.
If caught doing so, you can be fined $20 for the first offense, while subsequent offenses will cost you $50.
Here’s a snippet of the new law:
It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a moving motor vehicle on the highways in the Commonwealth while using any handheld personal communications device to:
1. Manually enter multiple letters or text in the device as a means of communicating with another person; or
2. Read any email or text message transmitted to the device or stored within the device, provided that this prohibition shall not apply to any name or number stored in the device nor to any caller identification information.
Read all of the no texting law here.
The law does not pertain to the use of GPS devices or “any person using a handheld personal communications device to report an emergency.”
Also, don’t worry. You can still text while riding a bike!
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Valerie Catrow
Valerie Catrow is editor of RVAFamily, mother to a mop-topped first grader, and always really excited to go to bed.
Notice: Comments that are not conducive to an interesting and thoughtful conversation may be removed at the editor’s discretion.
Finally… a law that makes sense…
How will they tell the difference between texting and dialing a phone number?
soooo if i get pulled over. open google maps on my iphone and show my current location i am ok?
also how will they know im texting?
What about checking Email . . .Does that count? Can I use it as an excuse for when I do get pulled over for texting?
I’m wondering how much this is going to be enforced.
I’d be interested to see a report in a few months of how many citations were issued.
Yeah that report will be interesting.
I will say though that I “caught” myself checking email and twitter multiple times this morning coming to work. I now owe the government about $500.
It’s a secondary offense, they can’t pull you over for texting but if you are texting and speeding or driving recklessly then they’ll hit you for it.
It says “multiple letters or text,” and I guess dialing is entering “numbers,” so that should be ok.
Tweets are not stored “inside the device” (“it’s IN the computer?”), so I interpret that reading tweets are ok, but that might be a stretch. And I’m not a lawyer or anything…
Lots of cops out this week (on motorcycles) specifically looking for texters, drunks and speeders. Be careful out there… they’re pulling a ton of people over. I saw a bunch on 64 between RIC & The Pump yesterday, and they’re going to be patrolling throughout the weekend.
I keep reading this as “No Textiles while Driving” and “No Exiting While Driving”. Thankfully for me the law isn’t “No Not Being Able to Read While Driving.”
DUMB. Just another way the government found to control the people and make more money off of us.
How is texting whilst driving not dumb? It just seems like common sense to me. Although looking both ways before crossing busy intersections seems like common sense to me too, but apparently it is not.
Not to argue that wasting taxpayer money is not DUMB, just texting in transit in general. Taxpayer money is wasted on a veritable galaxy of stupid things. Thats why money managemnet is so important. Just assume that a certain amount of your money will be put to waste, and plan accordingly. Then when things finally do change for the better, you will be even more stoked than you already would have been :)