More States Ban Texting While Driving

With the start of the new year, three more states have banned texting while driving, bring the total number of states which have made the practice illegal to 18. IMHO, it's good policy, both for teen drivers (likely the primary focus of the laws) and for adults as well.

Starting on New Year's Day (2010), Oregon, Illinois and New Hampshire joined 15 other states in enacting laws that ban texting while driving.

Of course, the laws seem to be aimed most directly at teen drivers, not only because of their inexperience behind the wheel but also because of their affection for digital devices. The combination of factors is a big problem.

A Pew Research Center study that found 34% of teens with cellphones say they have texted while driving.

Here are the states where the Governors Highway Safety Association says texting while driving is illegal:
Oregon
Illinois
New Hampshire
Alaska
Arkansas
California
Connecticut
Louisiana
Maryland
Minnesota
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Rhode Island
Tennessee
Utah
Virginia
Washington
...Plus the District of Columbia and Guam

Source: USA Today
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2010/01/three-more-states-enact-texting-while-driving-bans/1