North Carolina Highway Patrol Steps up Distracted Driving Campaign

North Carolina State Highway Patrol master trooper Chris Knox says he’s seen too many accidents caused by distracted drivers – mostly teenagers and young adults texting or emailing.

So Knox and other troopers in the Highway Patrol’s Greensboro district recently went undercover to enforce the state’s ban on texting and driving.

For a week in early December, troopers in plainclothes drove yellow state transportation department pickup trucks, looking for drivers who were texting behind the wheel.

Knox says the campaign was about finding creative ways to get drivers to comply with the law – a move that will ultimately save lives.

North Carolina lawmakers in 2009 banned texting and driving. Since then, the Highway Patrol has issued thousands of tickets.

But Knox says they’re trying to do more.