Pennsylvania State Police are cracking down on distracted driving.
Attention, drivers. You've been warned: Put the phone down.
Pennsylvania State Police on Friday announced a crackdown on distracted driving that will focus on Lehigh, Northampton and Bucks counties -- one that means zero-tolerance for drivers who are texting or otherwise using handheld phones while on the go.
Distracted driving is one of the leading causes of crashes in Pennsylvania, second only to speeding, state police said. It was a factor in 14,805 crashes in the state in 2015, resulting in 61 fatalities, according to a news release citing PennDOT statistics.
Nationwide, there are 660,000 drivers using cellphones or other devices at a given moment, the release said.
The specific motor vehicle violations to be enforced are texting while driving, using a handheld mobile telephone, prohibited use of hearing impairment devices, prohibited text-based communications, careless driving and reckless driving.
Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
