Political Quotes

“My amendment underscores the point that we need to be doing more, not less, to combat the dangerous habit of distracted driving on our Nation's roadways. Earlier this evening, we voted on a motion to instruct conferees on the highway bill to reject the Senate's bipartisan proposal to partner with the States on prevention strategies, and the bill before us now provides no additional funds to address what Transportation Secretary LaHood has identified as an epidemic in this country. Traffic accidents caused by distracted driving are on the rise in communities everywhere in this country. In my home county, our police department in Fairfax County reported a 48 percent increase in the number of citations issued for distracted driving in the last year. A recent study by Virginia Tech Transportation Institute points out 80 percent of all crashes and 65 percent of all near crashes have involved driver distraction. Nationally, the Department of Transportation reports that more than 416,000 people were injured in distracted driving accidents in 2010. Tragically, Mr. Chairman, 3,100 of those people were killed. According to a recent AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety survey, 94 percent of respondents recognized the risks of talking, texting, or emailing while driving and said such activities are unacceptable. And 87 percent said they supported laws against reading, typing, or sending text messages while driving.…”