“Texting Zones” Coming Soon to New York Highways

I was on the highway yesterday and saw something that I'd not seen before and knew I had to find out what was up. Maybe you saw it too.

Next time you're on 81 or 17, keep an eye out for trucks carrying blue and white signs with the words "Texting Zones" driving down the road.  Governor Cuomo has just unveiled something called "Texting Zones" along the highways and thruway of New York State.  Basically, these are spots on the side of the road where drivers can pull off, park and use their cell phones to text or surf the web.

It won't be too hard to spot the "Texting Zones" because there will be about 300 signs planted along the major highways in the state letting people know where they can find one of the 91 texting zone locations.

Park-N-Ride locations, rest stops (when they're actually open, right?!?) and parking areas will also be official texting zones.

And if you're thinking you don't need to pull off into a texting zone to do your business, you might want to think again because Governor Cuomo says there's been a 365% increase in the number of tickets issued to people texting/surfing the web/not using hands free devices in the past year.  And you've probably seen the signs on the highways that let you know that if you get pulled over for distracted driving, you'll be slapped with a $150 fine and 5 points on your license.  Not worth it, is it?