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Democratic senators are pushing for legislation that would
require states to ban texting while driving or risk losing
highway funds.
The proposed legislation to ban sending text messages while
behind the wheel comes on the heels of a Virginia Tech
Transportation Institute (VTTI) study that found that in some
cases texting while driving can increase the chance of a crash
by more than 23 times.

The proposal is aimed at reducing driver distraction and highway
deaths and injuries, according to The Associated Press.

Currently, 14 states and the District of Columbia have passed
laws that make texting while driving illegal. The Democratic
senators' proposal seeks banning texting behind the wheel in
every state.

The legislation is expected to be unveiled sometime today.

"The federal government ought to pass a law banning this
dangerous and growing practice to protect the millions of
Americans on our nation's roads. It is a matter of public
safety," Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) told the AP. Schumer is
expected to unveil the legislation Wednesday along with
Democrats Robert Menendez of New Jersey, Mary Landrieu of
Louisiana and Kay Hagan of North Carolina.

Reports indicate the legislation would require states to ban
texting or e-mailing while operating a moving vehicle or risk
losing 25 percent of their annual federal highway funding. Under
the legislation, the transportation secretary would be required
to issue guidelines within six months of the measure being
signed into law. From there, states would have two years to
approve the bans on texting while driving. States could recover
highway funds by passing the legislation after the two-year
period.

The bill would only aim at banning texting in a moving vehicle,
the AP reported. Drivers would not be barred from texting or e-
mailing while in a parked or stopped car.

According to the VTTI study that was released earlier this week,
people operating light vehicles or trucks face a high risk of
being in a crash while manually manipulating a cell phone. The
biggest risk for a crash, however, comes from truck drivers who
send text messages while operating a vehicle. Those drivers
posed a risk 23.2 times higher than nondistracted drivers of
being involved in a collision. In addition, reaching for an
object or electronic device makes truck drivers 6.7 times as
likely to cause a crash, while light vehicle drivers boost their
chances by 1.4 times.

The VTTI study also found that dialing a cell phone increases
all drivers' risk of being in a crash, with light vehicle
drivers' chances of crashing increased 2.8 times and truck
drivers' risk of crash increased 5.9 times.

"A real key to significantly improving safety is keeping your
eyes on the road," the VTTI study concluded.