This editorial was written for the North Texas Daily, the student newspaper of the University of North Texas. Published on October 11, 2011, this editorial seeks to gain support for legislation preventing the use of cell phones while driving. 

The 911 phone call was frantic.

The caller begged the dispatcher to hurry, that the victims weren’t breathing. EMT Mike Harper then got on the line.

“We have two 10-85 ECHOs here,” he said.

A 10-85 ECHO is an obvious fatality.

This conversation occurred in December 2009 just outside of Logan, Utah, at the scene of a car accident caused by 19-year-old Reggie Shaw. Shaw had been texting at the time his car drifted into the oncoming lane.

While tragic, this type of accident is not uncommon. In 2009, more than 5,000 people were killed in accidents that involved distracted driving. Today, more than 80 percent of traffic accidents are due to driver distraction.

According to a study by the University of Utah, texting while driving is almost as dangerous as driving with a blood alcohol content that is two times the legal limit.

On Sep. 13, Arlington joined Austin and San Antonio to become the third city in Texas to ban texting while driving.

After enforcement of the ban begins in November, drivers can be issued a $200 fine if they are caught texting or using any other applications while driving. However, it will remain perfectly legal to make phone calls while driving.

While the ban is a good starting point, it should be extended to include all cell phone use.

Just as Arlington City Council member Jimmy Bennett pointed out to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram after the vote was announced, the law as it stands will make it difficult for officers to determine whether a motorist was texting or just dialing a number to make a phone call.

Despite hard facts that distracted driving is dangerous, there are still those who feel that the government has no business telling people that they can’t use their cell phone while driving. Gov. Rick Perry sits among those people.

Earlier this year, he vetoed a bill that would have banned texting while driving in the state of Texas because it was a “government effort to micromanage the behavior of adults.”

True as this may be, if that adult behavior results in increasing the chance that a person will severely injure or kill a complete stranger, the government should “micromanage” its heart out. Had someone close to Perry been on the other side of Reggie Shaw’s car, Perry might be singing a different tune.

Yes, a ban may be difficult to enforce at first, and yes, it may be slightly inconvenient to not make phone calls or send emails while driving. But isn’t a human life worth it?

Contact your congressman and tell him that changes need to happen, and they need to happen now as Denton’s streets become more and more crowded.