Stamford is a city of about 128,000 people on the Connecticut coast on Long Island Sound. It’s the third largest city in Connecticut and the seventh largest in New England.
The city is governed by a mayor and a 40-member Board of Representatives.
Up for consideration by the Board is a pedestrian safety ordinance that would outlaw texting or talking while walking.
The proposed Stamford ordinance is modeled after one passed in Honolulu last month. If police catch a citizen talking or texting while walking, they could write a ticket that carries a $30 fine.
Stamford City representative John Zelinsky is concerned that people are “oblivious to cars” when approaching intersections.
I don’t want any more injuries or deaths as a result of pedestrians getting hit. We’ve had about four or five within the past three or four years.”
Local residents who agree with the proposal are especially concerned about intersections along Broad Street in downtown Stamford.
I see mothers pushing their babies, they’re texting and I’m like how do y’all do all this at this intersection? That scares me,” Dawn Thompson said.”
According to the National Governors’ Highway Safety Association, pedestrian fatalities across the nation jumped 11% last year, resulting in nearly 6,000 deaths.
Despite the inherent dangers of talking and texting while walking, other residents are not in favor of the ordinance.
Troy Latham believes the ordinance is “ridiculous.” He doesn’t like the idea of a fine or being forced to hang up.
If it’s an important text message or call they’re getting, like what if it’s too late, what if their mother’s in the hospital and they need someone to call real quick.”
Zelinsky counters the criticism by noting that the ordinance won’t apply to 911 calls, and that public safety, not revenue from the fines, is the real point.
Unspoken in the discussion is the unnecessary trauma and potential liability for drivers who inadvertently hit pedestrians who enter the roadway while distracted, giving drivers no time to react to avoid them.
It clearly becomes an example of a municipality trying to legislate common sense because of the number of people who become so distracted they lose perspective on the environment around them.
The Stamford initiative may, along with Honolulu’s law, become the vanguard of a national trend.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wl0JojWH1rQ&index=2&list=RDfTOZjXjaCaE
Source: New York CBS Local
If you watch the video closely, you will see that she’s looking straight ahead and as soon as she gets closer to the open doors, she pretends to look at her phone. She’s looking for a big payout.
Just stop! REALLY? WTF, no talking, no testing. Next thing you know there will be no cell phone use in public areas. As much as I personally would love that, STOP IT! Stop creating laws that aid those that would be taken care of by natural selection. Stop enabling the shitty gene pool! Let nature do what it does best!
Just stop! REALLY? WTF, no talking, no testing. Next thing you know there will be no cell phone use in public areas. As much as I personally would love that, STOP IT! Stop creating laws that aid those that would be taken care of by natural selection. Stop enabling the shitty gene pool! Let nature do what it does best!
I hope she is okay!! Are they going to outlaw walking and talking outright, or just walking and talking on a cellular device? I know some people who should probably receive a citation for failure to walk and talk simultaneously, without them being on a cellular device. . . o.O
The walking dead.