Help end distracted driving in Massachusetts!
Merritt just graduated high school and had started a cross country bicycling trip. Her trip and life were cut short by a texting driver.
Jordan was 18 when he dropped the phone he was talking on and lost control of his car, killing himself.
Katie was crossing the street with her friends in a well-lit area in the middle of town. A texting driver hit all 3 pedestrians, and Katie died 18 months later from her injuries.
Howard was pulled over on the side of the road to secure something on his truck when someone chose to program her GPS while driving and she hit and killed him. He was about to become a grandpa.
All of these deaths were 100% preventable.
All of these loved ones would be alive if there were a better law in place to deter distracted driving.
Help pass Hands-Free Massachusetts!
Massachusetts has been trying to pass a stronger distracted driving law for the past 10 years and despite the rise in crashes, injuries and deaths from distracted driving, efforts to make Massachusetts roads safer have been blocked at the State House.
It's time to pass Hands-Free Massachusetts!
A Hands-Free Bill is critical to preventing crashes due to distracted driving, which are killing and seriously injuring people every day.
We see distracted drivers around us every hour of the day, every day, and the problem continues to get worse.
Distracted driving kills, injures and impacts lives whether behind-the-wheel, in the passenger seat, on the road and on our sidewalks.
Distracted driving affects everyone!
With only 5 weeks left before Massachusetts' formal legislative session ends, we have to act now!
Your contributions will help us bring more hands on deck to meet with legislators at the State House and with other key players. We have a last minute opportunity to have help on the campaign to pass Hands-Free legislation, which will save lives and make Massachusetts roads and sidewalks safer. If you contribute even a small amount, you can feel that you played a part in finally getting this bill passed.
Background:
1. The Senate already passed their hands-free bill.
2. Governor Baker endorsed the bill last November.
3. We need to convince certain legislators that this bill deserves a vote!!!
We strongly believe the House will pass this bill, but we need to put in a lot of work these next few weeks to make that vote happen.
Why a hands-free bill matters:
– A 2017 AAA survey showed that 74% of AAA Massachusetts members support a hand-held ban.
– The texting ban under current law is outdated and ineffective, and it's unsafe and inefficient for police officers to enforce.
-Dialing a number or using GPS on a hand-held device takes a driver’s eyes and attention away from the road for just as much time as sending or reading a text. Both hands should be on the wheel, and the mind on the road. Everything else can wait.
– Massachusetts is surrounded by states in New England that have already passed a similar hands-free bill, including New Hampshire and Rhode Island!
Please contribute what you can to help us get this law passed.
We owe it to law enforcement, who find it extremely difficult and frustrating to enforce a texting ban without a handheld ban.
We owe it to families who have lost loved ones to distracted driving, some of whom have been fighting for Hands-Free legislation for 10 years.
We owe it to ALL drivers in Massachusetts to make our roads and sidewalks safer.
If you have been impacted by distracted driving, if you've had a close call with a distracted driver or if you get annoyed by drivers constantly looking DOWN at their phones instead of the road, it's time to join our surrounding New England states with a safer, more common sense law. Please contribute to our campaign.
Help pass Hands-Free Massachusetts!
Thank you.
To learn more about distracted driving, check out http://saferoadsalliance.org/ http://textlesslivemore.org/ and https://www.enddd.org/
