On Aug. 28 the Hands-Free Law took effect in Missouri, prohibiting drivers from holding or interacting with a cell phone in any way while operating a vehicle.
According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, within about 10 years, there were around 200,000 crashes related to distracted driving in Missouri.
School resource officer Daniel Sanders said that the new law is going to minimize distractions for drivers.
“I believe the new law will point us in the right direction as far as lowering the number of distracted driving accidents, as well as deaths resulting from these crashes. Positive results from the new law will probably take quite some time, as people will have to change driving habits which have been ’normal’ for them. Drivers will have to make a conscious effort to change their norms in regards to use of phones while driving,” Sanders said.
PE and Drivers Ed teacher Jason Schneider said that he appreciates that an attempt is being made to lower distractions and he thinks that this will help everyone move in the right direction.
“I love the fact that there is an effort being made to help reduce the amount of distractions while people are driving. While making Missouri “hands-free”, it still doesn’t mean this completely eliminates the phone from being a distraction, but I do think it is a step in the right direction,” Schneider said.
Junior Mady Brown said that she believes the new law should have been put into place sooner and that the law will change society due to the amount of people on their phones while driving.
“I think that the new Missouri hands-free law is a good idea and I also believe that this is a law that should have been taken into consideration sooner. This will change society today because lots of teenagers and even older people as well have issues with being on their phone while driving. Just simply changing a song in the car could lead to serious injuries with yourself and the other people around you,” Brown said.
Schneider said that he thinks that in order for the law to be effective, people need to be aware of the law and the law needs to be enforced.
“In order to make an impact the law must be enforced. If it is, then I think it will help limit the number of distractions for drivers. In turn, lower the number of accidents associated with driver inattention,” Schneider said.
Sanders also said that he thinks it will take people some time for people to break old habits and people will only be issued warnings.
“I believe that, over time, people will come to change their habits of using phones while behind the wheel. As far as immediate change, that will likely not occur. Those who violate the new hands free law will only be issued warnings for quite some time. I do like that aspect of the new law,” Sanders said.
Schneider said he thinks that in order for the law to be effective, people need to be aware of the law and it needs to be enforced.
“In order to make an impact the law must be enforced. If it is, then I think it will help limit the number of distractions for drivers. In turn, lower the number of accidents associated with driver inattention,” Schneider said.
Sanders said that there are already laws in place but its hard to prove when these laws are not followed. He also said he thinks that this should have been implemented sooner.
“I do [think this should have been put into place sooner]. Missouri has had some distracted driving laws on the books, such as texting and driving if under the age of 21. The problem is, laws like these are difficult to enforce and prove that a violation has occurred. Also, people of any age can be distracted with their phone, not just drivers under age 21. I always thought that law was inadequate,” Sanders said.
