A new year, new road laws
Sean Miller
Issue date: 2/1/10 Section: News
With the New Year, the State of Illinois is requiring that people quit a habit that some call addictive and, if not careful, can kill. No, it's not smoking: it's texting while driving.
On Jan. 1 of this year, when all laws passed by the Illinois General Assembly officially took effect. New statues were formally placed on the books that not only banned texting while a driver is behind the wheel, but also outlawed talking while in a school or construction zone and raised the speed limit for semis up to 65 miles per hour.
The law for banning talking while in a construction or school zone has been applauded for its efforts to cut down on the number of students and workers hit by passing vehicles. However, law enforcement officials are having a hard time interpreting the new law. Under the current law, if a parent is waiting in a line of cars to pick up their children, and they are talking on the cell phone, they are in violation of the statue.
Another road law is causing a controversy as well. Semi trucks in Illinois now have a speed limit of 65 miles per hour, raising it from the previous 55 miles per hour. Many trucking lines have been waiting a long time for this law to come into effect. Owners contend that under the 55 mile per hour speed limit added to federal regulations on semi drivers, they could not make a delivery from St. Louis to Chicago in a day.
Now with the new speed limit in place, drivers can make their delivery on time. However, organizations like AAA are worried that the safety implications it might bring. The physics behind the law prove that the semi would have more energy and cause more damage to a car in a collision. According to James McDaniel, a physics instructor at Lake Land, the semi would have a harder time stopping to avoid an accident. "It needs more distance to break to get rid of its kinetic energy," said McDaniel.
The law that may affect students at Lake Land the most would be banning texting while driving. Illinois now joins the ranks of 18 other states and two U.S. territories to ban text messaging for all drivers while at the wheel. Organizations in favor of the law say that this will cut down on the number of teenage automobile fatalities.
Jessica Dexter, a student at Lake Land, admits that she often text while driving, but believes that it will be impossible to enforce. "Teens speed all the time even though it's against the law, so why would this change anything?" said Dexter.
Kala Bullard, also a student at Lake Land, thinks that the rules will be followed; however it would be hard to enforce. "I'm sure a lot of people do it (texting while driving) and it's impossible to catch everyone," said Bullard.
On Jan. 1 of this year, when all laws passed by the Illinois General Assembly officially took effect. New statues were formally placed on the books that not only banned texting while a driver is behind the wheel, but also outlawed talking while in a school or construction zone and raised the speed limit for semis up to 65 miles per hour.
The law for banning talking while in a construction or school zone has been applauded for its efforts to cut down on the number of students and workers hit by passing vehicles. However, law enforcement officials are having a hard time interpreting the new law. Under the current law, if a parent is waiting in a line of cars to pick up their children, and they are talking on the cell phone, they are in violation of the statue.
Another road law is causing a controversy as well. Semi trucks in Illinois now have a speed limit of 65 miles per hour, raising it from the previous 55 miles per hour. Many trucking lines have been waiting a long time for this law to come into effect. Owners contend that under the 55 mile per hour speed limit added to federal regulations on semi drivers, they could not make a delivery from St. Louis to Chicago in a day.
Now with the new speed limit in place, drivers can make their delivery on time. However, organizations like AAA are worried that the safety implications it might bring. The physics behind the law prove that the semi would have more energy and cause more damage to a car in a collision. According to James McDaniel, a physics instructor at Lake Land, the semi would have a harder time stopping to avoid an accident. "It needs more distance to break to get rid of its kinetic energy," said McDaniel.
The law that may affect students at Lake Land the most would be banning texting while driving. Illinois now joins the ranks of 18 other states and two U.S. territories to ban text messaging for all drivers while at the wheel. Organizations in favor of the law say that this will cut down on the number of teenage automobile fatalities.
Jessica Dexter, a student at Lake Land, admits that she often text while driving, but believes that it will be impossible to enforce. "Teens speed all the time even though it's against the law, so why would this change anything?" said Dexter.
Kala Bullard, also a student at Lake Land, thinks that the rules will be followed; however it would be hard to enforce. "I'm sure a lot of people do it (texting while driving) and it's impossible to catch everyone," said Bullard.
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