Gray Column: DWT is illegal . . . sort of

OK, I admit I am guilty of this.  On occasion, while driving, I get that buzzing vibration on the side of my hip. The one meaning my phone is on silence mode and I just received a text message.
Fortunately the only time I ever read those texts is while at a red light. The worst thing that happened was someone pounded their horn behind me because the light turned green. 

There I said it. I admit my guilt of DWT at a red light. 

Oh by the way, if you don’t know the slang for DWT, it means Driving While Texting.  But while I can say I don’t read or write a text while actually driving, apparently one out of every four of us on the
beltway can’t say the same thing.

According to a recent survey done on beltway drivers in Virginia, one in four of the 1,000 respondents read and text messages while actually driving.  Even more disturbing is that 50 percent of those
respondents say they either had an accident or had a near miss as a result of their texting.

But near misses aren’t the real problem. It’s the actual hits that are disturbing.

The Fairfax County Times reported that Virginia State Police have logged a 10 percent increase of accidents on the beltway — presumably from texting. In addition crashes resulting in injury are up 19
percent and there were 114 fatal accidents in Virginia last year caused by distracted driving. 

If you are thinking, “there ought to be a law against DWT,” you are right, and there is, sort of. On March 30, Governor Tim Kaine signed a law making DWT a driving violation. But there is a catch. 

Under the law, DWT is a secondary offense. Meaning the only way the police should be issuing a ticket is if you are caught for something else — say speeding or running a red light — good thing I was
stopped at a light while reading my text.

As you can imagine, the law is also hard for the police to enforce. Who’s to say you weren’t distracted by something else — like a GPS finder you were following as you drive by directions. By the way,
that is still lawful to do. 

And even if you are caught DWT, the ticket is only $20 the first time with a maximum penalty of $50 for repeat offenses. Not too much of a deterrent if you ask me. 

Maybe Virginia needs a stiffer penalty system for DWT. Perhaps points on a license resulting in higher insurance costs or a costlier ticket fine. 

But For now, maybe we need to do what England is doing. 

In England they are showing a series of public service announcements (PSAs) that very graphically tell the tale of what happens when you DWT. The ads target teenagers but all of us should take notice.
If you want to see the ads just go to http://www.youtube.com and type in driving while texting. I think the ads speak for themselves and hopefully will change some minds on the issue.

As for here in Virginia, we will see if the new law will make a difference. I am not one for excessive regulation. But when someone’s actions place other people’s lives in jeopardy, a greater punishment is
warranted. 

DWT shouldn’t just be slang; it should really be against the law. After seeing the PSA video from England, I know I won’t do it again — even at a stop light.

Davon Gray works in Washington, D.C., and resides in Woodbridge. Contact him at .