Shreveport Injury Lawyer > Blog > Distracted Driving Accident > Distracted Driving Bill Could Reduce Crashes in Shreveport

Distracted Driving Bill Could Reduce Crashes in Shreveport

Louisiana has a serious distracted driving problem, and collisions routinely result in serious and deadly injuries in Shreveport and across the state. According to a recent article from KNOE, the American Automobile Association released a report in early April 2024 that identified Louisiana as the state with the third-highest rate of distracted drivers in the country. In total, over the last five years, more than 1,700 people have died in distracted driving-related crashes in the state. And given that distracted driving cannot always be positively identified in the same manner as drunk driving, it is possible that even more deaths are connected to distracted driving collisions.

Recognizing the immediate need to reduce distracted driving wrecks in Louisiana, state lawmakers have introduced a bill that “would prohibit drivers from holding phones while driving,” according to KNOE, but it would still permit drivers to “be able to use GPS and make or take hands-free calls” while driving. Our Shreveport distracted driving lawyers can tell you more.

Details of Senate Bill 98

The newly proposed legislation, Senate Bill 98, has bipartisan support from Louisiana lawmakers and was recently passed in a Senate vote. It is currently in the process of being considered in the House, and if approved there, it can be signed into law by the governor.

What are the details of the bill? The title and summary are clear: it “prohibits use of a handheld wireless telecommunications device by a person when operating a motor vehicle upon any public roadway in this state.” If the proposed law passes, it will also consolidate separate prohibitions concerning the use of wireless communications devices while driving, and it will also clarify what constitutes unlawful use of a wireless communications device given recent advances in technology. If the bill passes, it will allow for only limited exhibitions to the prohibition on handheld phone use while driving.

Reducing Distracted Driving in Louisiana

The data reported by the American Automobile Association in its recent report suggests that drivers in Louisiana use phones while driving “30 percent more than the American average,” and nearly 20 percent of Louisiana drivers admitted to using phone apps “as a source of entertainment while driving. According to a Louisiana spokesperson for the American Automobile Association, making handheld phone calls has become “the least of our concerns right now” given that drivers in Louisiana have been found to be using phones for various purposes while driving, “even facetime while they’re driving.”

Data from Louisiana State University’s Center for Analytics and Research in Transportation Safety reveals that more than 40 percent of deadly crashes in Louisiana result from distracted driving, and that almost 50 percent of all collisions resulting in serious injuries over the last five years also involved a distracted driver. A new law could help reduce these rates and make roads safer for motorists in Shreveport.

Contact a Shreveport Distracting Driving Injury Attorney Today

Nobody should have to worry that they will be seriously injured or will lose a loved one as a result of distracted driving on Louisiana’s roadways. Yet motor vehicle occupants, as well as pedestrians and bicyclists, are routinely injured and often killed in devastating crashes caused by distracted drivers.

If you or someone you love sustained injuries in a collision caused by a distracted driver, you should contact an experienced Shreveport distracted driving injury lawyer at Rice & Kendig to find out about your options for filing a claim and seeking compensation. A personal injury attorney at our firm can speak with you today about your case and moving forward with an insurance claim or a civil lawsuit.

Sources:

knoe.com/2024/04/04/la-ranks-3rd-nation-with-highest-distracted-drivers-bill-would-ban-handheld-phones/

kplctv.com/video/2024/04/26/hands-free-bill-aims-reduce-distracted-driving-louisiana/

legiscan.com/LA/bill/SB98/2024

By Rice & Kendig, LLC | Posted on July 30, 2024

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