Candace Lightner: Sen. Fetterman, sign the pledge to stop distracted driving

Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, following his history of speeding and distracted driving while at the wheel, needs to understand that his actions have real consequences — consequences that can take innocent lives.

The family of Gracie James knows this fact; she was a victim in a distracted driving crash unrelated to the senator’s issues. Gracie was 17 years old and a passenger in a car when the driver was going over 70 miles per hour and was trying to get the attention of another driver. The driver lost control of the vehicle and it rolled over three times.

Christina Bobel, Gracie’s mom, will tell you that “Losing a child in a senseless car crash is far worse than any nightmare. A nightmare ends; eventually, you wake up. Someone’s momentary distraction took my sunshine away.”

We want the junior senator from Pennsylvania to take responsibility for his distracted driving record, which was highlighted most recently with a crash this month.

Media reports also state that Fetterman in the past has received two speeding tickets for violations of at least 24 miles per hour above the speed limit; he later was required to complete a driver’s improvement course. Former aides also say his habit of texting and using FaceTime while driving was worrisome.

Fetterman is correct to say he’ll drive slower and “do better,” and we’re going to hold him accountable for his choices. Those who travel with him as passengers or know about his reckless driving have a choice as well — they need to show the courage to intervene by stopping him and others from using smartphones while driving.

Fetterman can start to be a positive example as driving safety advocates seek to transform the “100 deadliest days of summer” into the “100 safest days of summer.”

Experts say the 100 days from Memorial Day to Labor Day are when most teen driving fatalities and crashes occur. The initiative emphasizes the critical role parents play, as they are the No. 1 influencer of their teens’ driving attitudes and behaviors.

Data show that 60% of teen crashes today are caused by distracted driving. Do you know what all of these distracted driving crashes have in common? They’re all entirely preventable.

While some lawmakers have enacted distracted driving laws, we still have a long ways to go. Most states now have bans on texting while driving. Pennsylvania is just about to the join those states, after many years of effort.

States that have statewide anti-texting laws have lower rates of texting while driving at a statistically significant level. States that ban texting while driving have fewer crash-related hospitalizations.

Even states with bans have laws with loopholes and other problems. For example, some states don’t even consider texting while driving a primary offense, which means that a person can’t be stopped and cited solely for it, in spite of the fact that lives are being lost solely because of it.

Manufacturers have tried to fix our distracted driving problem with even more distracting devices. They have developed so-called “hands-free” devices that let drivers use their gadgets without getting distracted. Except they don’t. On the contrary, research has found that speech-to-text devices pose even more of a threat to drivers than regular texting.

This is why we’re publicly asking Fetterman to agree to “Text, email, or call from wherever you want, #BUTNOTWHILEDRIVING” with the online pledge form at wesavelives.org/butnotwhiledriving/. In fact, we’d like all drivers to sign it.

I applaud the senator’s aides who refuse to drive with him. If more potential passengers refused to ride with dangerous drivers, lives would be saved and drivers might rethink how they drive.

Our goal is not to shame Fetterman; we want to use his experience as a learning opportunity for everyone about the dangers of not paying attention while driving.

Candace Lightner is founder and president of We Save Lives.