Washington Negligent Driving Laws Position Letter

Revising Washington State’s Negligent Driving Laws

To: Washington State Legislators

Imagine a cyclist trying to make a turn when a driver suddenly pulls in front of him and causes a side collision at 40 mph. This causes the cyclist to be killed as he crashes into the car, while the driver pays no attention, just talking on the cell phone. The penalty, nothing whatsoever. The driver wasn’t driving under the influence, and was not even committing a traffic violation. While aggressive driving under the influence has been highlighted through the use of Washington State’s Driving Laws, as well as other state’s laws, highlighting the negligent driving half of the issue has taken a backseat many times. Even now, the State’s current Negligent Driving Laws fail to cover those who are using cell phones while driving in an increasingly digital age. A recent investigation by the National highway Transportation Safety Agency finds that over eighty-five percent of drivers are using their cell phones while driving, be it answering a call or texting. (Glazer) This could mean that more drivers have the chance of paying too much attention to their texts than the road ahead, thus causes numerous amounts of traffic accidents and accidental crashes waiting to just happen. Senator Kline, as well as Reps Santos and Pettigrew, should revise the Negligent Driving Laws to include other negligent drivers who commit everyday violations, because it will ensure the safety of all cyclists and pedestrians within Washington State.

In order to revise the state’s Negligent Driving Laws, you must first consider what negligent driving is defined as. The issue is not to distinguish between intentional actions that affect one’s driving (such as drinking and intoxication) and unintentional actions, but also to distinguish between different criminal unintentional actions that can cause one to temporarily lose control of his/her car and seriously injure/ kill a cyclist or pedestrian, or noncriminal actions like picking up a cell phone while driving. One definition of negligent driving that has no penalty, whatsoever, yet can endanger lives in a reckless manner are everyday actions, such as texting or answering a call while driving, which can distract a person for a while. But how has this degraded the safety that Seattle must offer to its citizens, its pedestrian and cyclist commuters?

The changes in the Negligent Driving Laws will offer the cyclists and pedestrians within the state greater protection and safety through several different ways. One way that this will offer pedestrians and cyclists greater safety, is by highlighting for the younger drivers the similarities between criminal traffic violations and noncriminal actions, like taking out a cell phone to answer it or text while driving, so that the beginning driver can pay more attention to avoiding even these things. Texting isn’t really banned or forbidden, yet it is more of an inferred action that one must stop from being distracted while driving. However, it is still equally as important as prosecuting for negligent driving if it is through a traffic violation because of the effect it can have if the driver loses control of the vehicle. For older drivers, who for the most part are the ones doing these actions through long-time habit, this will force them to look at their driving habits and consider what needs to be changed. Yet, if the state leaves the current laws without revising them and including these approaches to negligent driving, dire consequences may result from too many people finding that driving with a cell phone/ texting is commonly accepted without concern.