03-04-2025
Law enforcement cracking down on distracted driving
SCHUYLER COUNTY, N.Y. (WETM) –Distracted driving is the most common contributing factor in vehicle crashes in New York State.
April is distracted driving awareness month and law enforcement is cracking down on distracted driving. According to Schuyler County Sheriff Kevin Rumsey, distracted driving in 2025 has to do more with electronics than anything else.
'An example would be scrolling through Facebook or Instagram or Snapchat any kind of social media while you're driving. That is just completely a distraction to what you should be doing while you are driving a vehicle that could possibly harm or hurt somebody when you're not paying attention,' said Rumsey.
Officers and deputies look for a number of things when they try to catch distracted drivers, including a car's speed in traffic.
'Sometimes the deputies will actually see them on an electronic device like their phone or something in their hand as they're driving and they're looking down and you know they start to veer off the road or anything like that,' added Rumsey.
Although you may be tempted to do other things while you're driving, Sheriff Rumsey says there are ways to avoid it like putting your devices away where you can't see them.
'It's very easy to set your phone down, turn the ringer off, turn everything off, or completely hook it to your vehicle. I mean, all the vehicles now are very much wired in so you can access them through Bluetooth or whatever however it may be, do everything hands-free.'
Increased patrols will be out all over New York State from April 7th through April 14th as part of the statewide distracted driving campaign.
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