Cops rarely ticket for texting

SPRINGFIELD | Three months after passage of the state's new ban on text messaging while driving, it appears police are not exactly burning up their ticket pads to enforce the law.

Police officers from northern and eastern Illinois both said they know of only a handful of tickets written for violating the texting ban.

Lt. Gary Spangler, of the DeKalb Police Department, said he isn’t surprised his officers aren’t seeing many tickets for texting.

"We’ve only written one and that was on a DUI accident," he said. "So it’s not a type of offense that we are going to get a lot of citations out of."

Bryan Baker, the chief of police in Charleston, also said his department has written only one citation for texting.

Lawmakers passed the ban last year, citing the need to stop the increasing trend of traffic accidents caused by distracted drivers. At the time, many questioned how police officers would be able to enforce the law. That question remains.

Master Sgt. Isaiah Vega, of the Illinois State Police, said troopers are developing new methods of enforcement.

"The Illinois State Police is currently working on several programs to not only make individuals aware but to concentrate enforcement efforts in order to address the distracted driving laws," he said.

Yet, Baker said his officers are just too busy to develop new ways to enforce the law -- especially in light of financial woes plaguing departments across the state.

"We haven’t tried any new methods," Baker said. "We are just trying to keep our heads above the water. I’m hoping I won’t have to lay anyone off like Mattoon did."

Vega hopes enforcement will become easier as officers learn what to look for.

"If they’re distracted by operating their telephone or GPS device or other electronic device, (they) will be looking down and will either be traveling at a slower pace and/or swerving within that lane, which is what attracts the officer’s attention," he said.

However, once the distracted driver is pulled over, it can be difficult for officers to determine if the driver actually broke the law. The texting ban still allows drivers to use their phones for talking, looking for contacts and using the phone’s built-in global positioning system (GPS).

Spangler said Illinois residents may never know how effective the texting ban actually is.

"It’s going to be hard to measure whether the public is going to change their habits due to the fact that there is a law now on the books," he said.

Even so, Vega said the law will save lives in the long run.

"It’s still too early in the year to properly gauge what impact the texting law has had," Vega said. "However, the fact that the law exists and motorists are aware of the new law is a great step forward in limiting driver distraction and improving safety on Illinois roadways."