By Rachel Goff
Starting October 1, a new state law will prevent drivers from using handheld devices while behind the wheel.
Vermont already had a law against texting while driving, but it proved hard to enforce because police could not verify what the phone was being used for. Now, drivers are not allowed to talk, text or look anything up on their devices while on the road. The use of Bluetooth and other hands-free technology is still permitted.
According to John Lynch of Moretown, who owns Central Vermont Driving School, the new law "is kind of a no-brainer," he said, as "any level of distraction is dangerous to driving."
Lynch hopes the ban on handheld devices will help raise awareness about the accidents that happen when drivers are not paying full attention to their vehicle and their surroundings.
"I'm not looking for radical enforcement," he said. "I don't say, 'don't do that, you're going to get a ticket,'" he said. "I say, 'don't do that, it's unsafe.'"
Lynch works primarily with young drivers, but he thinks compliance with the new law will help protect all types of drivers, both young and old.
"The teenagers are actually pretty good texters but poor drivers. That's a bad combo," he said. "Adults, on the other hand, are pretty good drivers but poor texters," Lynch said. "That's a bad combo, too."
Really, "it's all generational," Lynch said, "and a lot of parents talk and drive and text and drive," so their children are growing up thinking that's OK. Hopefully with the new law, "parents will be better mentors," he said, and won't use handheld devices while behind the wheel.
In Lynch's drivers' education classes, "I always make [students] put their cellphones in the trunk of the car, so every time they drive it's a physical thing they have to do" before they start the car, he said.
Currently, the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) also offers a demo where students try to text and maneuver a golf cart at the same time to see how it affects their driving and Lynch hopes to bring the free program to his school to show just how dangerous distractions can be.
{loadnavigation}
