In spite of the playful sound of the subject, “Tumble-Texting” relates to two deadly serious activities that require your immediate and full attention! Perhaps you have read our views on rumble stripes, rumble strips, or tumble strips, as we cyclists call them. Daily investigation into how they invaded our cycling roadways reveals, at least one “justification” was to alert distracted drivers to get back on the road. Of course, as we know, texting while driving is the single biggest distraction causing this deadly wandering with a motor vehicle. Our investigation continues, but here is a call to arms that WE MUST ALL ANSWER!!
First of all, USING A HANDHELD DEVICE WHILE DRIVING SHOULD BE AGAINST THE LAW! We should lobby our lawmakers immediately and make this happen! We have all seen or been involved with accidents that are a direct result of this deadly activity! Lately, every time I drive my car I have been hit or almost hit by a distracted driver! This is a no-brainier folks, so politicians can do it easily! It is easy to implement, easy to enforce and very effective. Impose a $10,000 fine and use some of the revenue for an insurance policy for victims. This will stop this activity in a month because nobody will want their phone records collected by the police!
OK, that problem solved, let’s move on to rumble strips. RUMBLE STRIPS HAVE NO PLACE OTHER THAN CONTROLLED ACCESS INTERSTATE HIGHWAYS, where they can help drowsy truckers stay on the roadway. They have no place on rural highways that are used by folks to go to work, go shopping, or ride their bicycles on! RUMBLE STRIPS SHOULD NOT BE USED TO COMBAT TEXTING WHILE DRIVING! TEXTING WHILE DRIVING SHOULD BE BANNED! Can you see the problem?? We are condoning and catering to an activity that should not be allowed! (Try that with your kids and they are also out of control!) Also, RUMBLE STRIPS CAUSE BICYCLE ACCIDENTS! Again, we are victims of a situation that should not exist! Our investigation has revealed that the people who have influenced the addition of deadly-to-cyclists rumble strips on ALL NEW ROAD CONSTRUCTION have never ridden a road bike on the road!! THERE ARE CYCLIST FRIENDLY ALTERNATIVES! Singing paint, intermittent reflectors and other systems exist and should be used.
Each day that goes by brings you and me closer to being a victim of these situations, whether cycling or driving on our roads. WE HAVE A RIGHT, AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, A RESPONSIBILITY to make a change in the, what is now, it seems, status quo! Please call or write us to get a list of phone numbers and contacts you should act on. We continue to converse with officials on the state and federal level, and you should too. Green-minded cyclists want to make Mississippi and America better, but all cyclists and drivers alike have a more compelling argument to make these changes . . . TO STAY ALIVE!
