Gordon Forgey

The governor recently signed a new law tightening the punishment for drunk driving.

That is good.

It was an easy thing to do politically. Nobody likes intoxicated drivers. They are a danger to other drivers and to pedestrians.

Gradually, over the years, awareness and penalties have grown. Extra money has been made available to form special task forces to crack down on drunk drivers.

While intoxicated drivers have long endangered others on the roadways, new dangers are emerging: Inattentive drivers.

For years, drivers have put on makeup, shaved, eaten, smoked and read books.

The new crop of inattentive drivers have new distractions. They have cell phones and texting devices. They have GPS maps and dashboard screens that display a variety of information.

Studies show that drivers who text while driving are 23 times more likely to have an accident or near-crash.

In California, about 30 percent of highway deaths are attributable to drunk drivers. Yet, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 80 percent of all accidents are caused by driver inattention.

Distracted drivers are not new, but the dangers are growing because of all the new gadgets and temptations while in a vehicle.

Cracking down on the old nemesis of drunken driving is important. There is a social stigma attached to driving drunk. No such stigma keeps drivers from texting, phoning and otherwise multi-tasking while behind the wheel.

It is time that changed.

Gordon Forgey

Publisher