Drive Distracted and 'U Pay' if Manchester Police Catch You

Manchester police are participating in the “U DRIVE. U TEXT. U PAY.” campaign to crack down on drivers who text, talk on the phone or otherwise drive while doing something distracting with a hand-held mobile phone.

Police will be monitoring “high volume traffic areas,” looking for drivers using a cell phone while driving.

As many as 50 other police departments in Connecticut and the state’s Department of Transportation are also participating in the UUU campaign, sponsored by the National Traffic Safety Administration, which named April national “Distracted Driving Awareness Month.” The crackdown will last through the month, Manchester police said.

Violating Connecticut’s cell phone and texting law can get you heavy fines, from $150 for a first offense, $300 for a second violation, and $500 for each violation after that.

During a similar, three-week campaign across the state last September, more than 7,000 drivers received a citation for using a phone while driving. In 2013, a total of 3,154 people were killed and an estimated 424,000 more were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers, according to a state Department of Transportation news release.

“According to a 2014 special article in the New England Journal of Medicine, the risk of a crash or near-crash among novice drivers increased with the performance of many secondary tasks, including texting and dialing cell phones,” according to a the news release.

“Connecticut remains the only state in the nation to receive special distracted driving prevention funds — the same funds that allow for special patrols to identify, stop and cite drivers who choose to ignore distracted driving laws,” according to the Transportation Department. “Over $4.6 million dollars has been awarded to the state over the last two years specifically — to fund campaigns like this one.”

For more information, see the U.S. government’s website about distracted driving.