Eyes on the Road

We all do our best to be good drivers, but the cell phone screams at us from the passenger seat and it is tempting to pick it up and respond. Be careful! Let it ring until you can pull over to pick it up; besides, the Kansas government may be giving you a new reason to ignore your phone. The Kansas Senate is currently working a bill, Senate Substitute for House Bill 2437, which would prohibit text messaging while driving a motor vehicle. Many other states have either introduced or passed bills on the same subject with intention of reducing the number of distracted-while-driving accidents.

You can find the full text of Senate Substitute for House Bill 2437 at http://www.kslegislature.org/
Click on "full text of bills" from the menu along the top of the page, then type in 2437.

You can find a list of states that either ban or limit cell phone use or texting while driving at:
List from the National Conference of State Legislatures
http://www.ncsl.org/?tabid=17057

List from the Governors Highway Safety Association
http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood has banned texting while driving for school bus drivers and commercial truckers:
http://www.distraction.gov/files/dot/MotorCarrierPressRelease.pdf

Secretary LaHood has instituted a non-profit organization to raise awareness of the problems derived from distracted driving:
http://www.distraction.gov/files/press-release/dot0410508forweb.pdf

Learn more about the facts and figures regarding distracted driving:
http://www.distraction.gov/stats-and-facts/

A study at Virginia Tech Transportation Institute funded by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration produced a report that has the most recent stats and figures:
http://www.access.vtti.vt.edu/PDFs/100CarDriverInattention.pdf

If you text, you are 23.2 times higher a risk for a crash or near-crash than non-distracted driving. So do yourself a favor: put your phone in the glove box or your purse until you get to your destination!

Drive on the Right Law, et al.

Over 140 bills passed during the 2009 Legislative Session and were signed into law. Many of these new laws go into effect today. Among the new statutes is the "Drive on the Right" law which some have found to be a bit confusing.

Below is a summary of the "Drive on the Right" law provided by the Kansas Legislative Research Department from its publication, 2009 Summary of Legislation (pages 138-139). We've also included some other links to information on "drive on the right" laws as well as a couple resources on legislative activities during the 2009 Session .

Summary of the Drive on the Right Law
"Drive on the Right"; Increases in Certain Motor Carrier Permit Fees; and Cotton Module Permits —House Sub. for SB145

House Sub. for SB145 requires vehicles to be driven in the right lane on a multi-lane road outside of a city, increases certain permit fees charged by the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT), and changes requirements for cotton module permits.

Specifically, the bill makes the following changes to the existing law:

● It amends existing law to require vehicles to be driven in the right lane when two lanes of traffic are going in the same direction on a highway outside of any city. It also requires vehicles on highways with three or more lanes proceeding in the same direction not to be driven in the far left lane. Exceptions apply to both cases:

● When overtaking and passing another vehicle;

● When preparing to make a proper left turn;

● As otherwise directed by official traffic-control devices; or

● As otherwise required by other provisions of law.

The provisions do not apply to authorized emergency, law enforcement, or Kansas Turnpike Authority vehicles or to KDOT vehicles used for construction or maintenance work. Law enforcement officials will be required to issue warning citations for the first full year the bill’s provisions will be in effect (until July 1, 2010).

Kansas News Media Information on the Law

Topeka Capital-Journal
http://www.cjonline.com/news/state/2009-06-27/stay_on_the_right_its_the_law

Wichita Eagle
http://www.kansas.com/news/legislature/story/874759.html

KWCH TV News (Wichita)
http://www.kwch.com/Global/story.asp?s=10556830

Other States With Keep Right Laws
(This is a sampling of a handful of states. Also keep in mind that laws can sometimes change faster than they are updated on state websites)

Colorado
http://www.cdot.info/Publications/Brochures/leftlanebrochure.pdf
(A pamphlet on the state's law)

Idaho
http://www3.idaho.gov/cgi-bin/newidst?sctid=490060030.K

Illinois
http://ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/fulltext.asp?DocName=062500050K11-701

Washington State
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=46.61.100

Other Resources on Right/Left Lane Laws

Lane Courtesy
http://www.motorists.org/lanecourtesy/
(National Motorists Association information on the importance of keeping to the right on highways)

State "Keep Right" Laws
http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html
(A comparison of state "keep right" laws compiled by John Carr, MIT)

Other Legislation of Interest Passed During the 2009 Session

2009 Summary of Legislation
http://www.skyways.org/ksleg/KLRD/Publications/2009-summary-of-legislation.pdf
(Kansas Legislative Research Department)

2009 Legislative Highlights
http://www.skyways.org/ksleg/KLRD/Publications/2009-legislative-highlights.pdf
(Kansas Legislative Research Department)