Agents of the Land Transportation Office (LTO-7) in Central Visayas begin to enforce the new law against distracted driving which prohibits, among others, the use of mobile phones by drivers.
CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA
ANTI-DISTRACTED DRIVING ACT
PUT away your cell phones while driving.
At least two people in Cebu City learned this lesson the hard way yesterday during the first day of implementation of Republic Act 10913 otherwise known as the Anti-Distracted Driving Act (ADDA).
The two drivers, on board an L300 van and a car respectively, were accosted by transportation officials along Natalio Bacalso Avenue after they were seen holding their phones while driving.
“Each driver was penalized P5,000 for violating the act,” Lee Everett Chuan, officer in charge of the Land Transportation Office in Central Visayas (LTO-7), told Cebu Daily News.
ADDA prohibits drivers from making or receiving calls, browsing on the internet, watching videos, playing games, and sending and reading text messages while driving.
Violators will be penalized with a fine of P5,000 for the first offense; P10,000 for the second offense; P15,000 for the third offense along with the suspension of the driver’s license; and P20,000 for the fourth offense together with the revocation of the license.
With two violators apprehended by LTO during the first day of the law’s implementation, Chuan acknowledged the need to raise public awareness.
“It will be a good sign if wala juy madakpan (no one is caught), meaning the public is well informed,” Chuan added.
Chuan urged local government units (LGUs) to help them implement the law through deputized agents.
Chuan said it was a challenge for them to implement the law especially on tinted cars where the drivers were less visible from outside.
To determine if a violation has indeed been committed, authorities need to actually catch the driver in the act of using his or her cell phone.