Suffolk Cracks Down on Distracted Driving

Suffolk County authorities launched a short-lived anti-distracted driving initiative last week, during which time over a thousand summonses were issued and more for other traffic violations. They hoped this would strike a nerve on the roads to cut down on dangerous behavior while driving.

The initiative lasted from July 31 to August 6. In all, police handed out 1109 tickets for electronic-related violations and 1600 other vehicle violations. 78 motorists were arrested.

It is unclear what impact, if any, will come of this, but advocates including Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy and Suffolk County Police Commissioner Richard Dormer are hopeful of its success. The goal is to change "drivers' behavior regarding cell phone use while driving," pursuant to the New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law. The police commissioner maintained that his forces will continue to enforce cell phone laws beyond the close of the initiative.

The law, NYS VTL Section 1225-D, had originally given police the power to issue a ticket for driving while texting if the motorist had been involved in another independent violation. The law has been amended in recent months to allow police to pull over any driver who operates any electronic device.

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