Below is the letter that BikeWalkLee sent to the Committee today, urging them to support SB 76 on Tuesday. At the end of this blog, there are also links to other related documents, including the action alert by the FL DNT TXTNDRV Coalition.
It is important for citizens to contact (phone or email) members of the Senate Committee prior to their Tuesday Feb. 19th 4:30 p.m. meeting. See the list of members and links to how to contact them.
Best way to contact them is to CALL:
Chair: Senator Tom Lee (R) 850-487-5020
Vice-Chair: Senator Keith Perry (R) 850-487-5008
Senator Aaron Bean (R) 850-487-5004
Senator Janet Cruz (D) 850-487-5018
Senator Ed Hooper (R) 850-487-5016
Senator Travis Hutson (R) 850-487-5007
Senator Linda Stewart (D) 850-487-5013
Senator Annette Taddeo (D) 850-487-5040
February 14, 2019
As the Committee considers SB 76 “Use of Wireless Communications
Devices While Driving” on Feb. 19th, we urge you to support this bill that would
make texting or talking on a hand-held cell phone a “primary” offense. It is critical that Florida, one of the most
dangerous states in the country for all road users (drivers, motorcyclists,
pedestrians, and cyclists), strengthen roadway safety laws to address the
growing dangers of distracted driving.
Across the nation, overall traffic fatalities have surged in the
past four years. In Florida, traffic
fatalities climbed by 25% between 2014 and 2017. In Lee County, fatal traffic crashes increased
much faster –40% between 2014 to 2017. According to the Florida Dept. of
Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, there were almost 50,000 crashes involving
distracted driving in Florida in 2016, and these crashes accounted for more
than 3,500 serious injuries and 233 deaths.
Most experts agree that the primary cause of the surge in traffic
fatalities is distracted driving, increasingly caused by the use of smart
phones and internet apps. The National Safety Council reports that the risk of a crash is four times greater when
a cell phone is in use. According to the national “Safe Driving Report:
2016-2017” (issued by the insurance firm EverQuote Inc.), Florida ranked the second-worst state for distracted
driving.
Recent studies show there is a relationship between individual
state roadway safety rankings and that state’s driver safety laws and
enforcement of those laws. While Florida is
one of the most dangerous states in the country for road users, it ranks as the seventh worst state for driver
safety laws (2016 study by the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety). Florida is one of only four states that
doesn't make texting while driving a primary offense—which allows police to
pull over motorists for offenses. Clearly, one of the reasons Florida's traffic
fatalities are among the highest in the nation is that it has very weak driver
safety laws in place.
Florida's alarming increase in traffic fatalities is not only a
concern for driver safety, it is of particular concern for vulnerable road users
-- pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorcyclists -- who are at the greatest risk
when drivers take their eyes off the road.
The national 2019 “Dangerous by Design” report ranked Florida as the most dangerous state in the country
for pedestrians, and eight of the
most dangerous metro areas in the U.S. are in Florida. This is a crisis
that can no longer be ignored by the Florida Legislature.
It is time to address the larger problem of use of cell phones while
driving, not just texting. Not only is
the current Florida texting law weak, it is difficult to enforce. Laws prohibiting all motor vehicle drivers
from using hand-held electronic communication devices while driving can be more
effectively enforced.
We know that stronger laws will reduce Florida’s roadway
fatalities. Of the 15 states and the
District of Columbia that have enacted “hands-free” laws, 13 saw an average
17.5% decrease in traffic fatalities within two years after passing and
enforcing their new laws. Applying these
findings to Florida, if HR 45/SB 76 were enacted an
estimated 545 lives could be saved each year.
In each of the past six years, the Florida Legislature failed to
take any action to strengthen its weak anti-texting law, and took no action to
address the broader causes of distracted driving. It is critically important that the Legislature
take action this year to address the
growing dangers presented by the use of electronic devices while driving.
We urge the Committee to support SB 76 and work to ensure that it
becomes law this year.
Thank you for your support.
Darla Letourneau
on behalf of BikeWalkLee
FL DNT TXTNDRV Coalition 1/28/19 handout re: SB 76 and HB 107:
Senate Bill #76
Florida Senate Bill Tracking for SB 76
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