WORCESTER—Two weeks ago, Worcester police brought back the “Eyes Up Phones Down” campaign to warn people about the dangers of distracted driving. This public safety effort is aimed at drivers to keep their focus on the road.
Joseph Early, Worcester County’s district attorney, reported there were more than 325 fatal crashes in 2023. And so far in 2024, there have been 1,600 crashes, 40 of which were fatal.
The hands-free law kicked in back in February 2020 in Massachusetts, but according to Early, dealing with COVID-19 took priority at the time. Now that Worcester has relaunched “Eyes Up Phones Down,” Early wants to remind drivers to turn on that “Do Not Disturb” feature on their phones.
“Everyone drives, and everyone sees the amount of phone use that’s going on with people,” Early said. “It’s just gotten out of hand. We see the amount of people blowing through red lights. If your kid is driving in one direction, you wouldn’t be someone coming in that direction texting and driving and distracted. Treat other people on the road the way you want to be treated.”
Early said the success of initiatives such as Eyes Up Phones Down is highly dependent on community partnerships, which he maintains is particularly prevalent in Worcester.
“I love working with our community partners,” he said. “It really is all about the partnerships. I love working on our prevention support network. I love making a difference in people’s lives and a difference in public safety. The first rule of policing is to prevent crimes.”
Considering the relaunch of the Eyes Up Phones Down campaign, Worcester Interim Police Chief Paul Saucier emphasized that collaboration with other organizations has been vital.
“We did a lot of Zoom calls in the beginning to get this together,” said Saucier. “It was a collaboration with many different organizations around the community and state. The ultimate goal is for us to combat distracted driving and educate the public about how dangerous it is.”
Early’s office teamed up with the RMV, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, the city, the Worcester Police Department, AAA, Safe Roads Alliance, and WalkBike Worcester. Together, they’ve pushed this campaign to get residents to avoid distractions behind the wheel. The goal is to cut down on crashes and increase safety for drivers and pedestrians.
Saucier described the unique approach that Worcester police took for the first week of April. Beginning April 1, Worcester Police briefly paused on ticketing for distracted driving for a week.
“During that time, drivers pulled over for distracted driving did not receive citations but were reminded of the Massachusetts Hands Free Law,” said Saucier, “and received a pamphlet that the DA’s office created outlining the dangers of distracted driving.”
After the initial education period, the penalties for distracted drivers kicked in. “The first offense is $100, the second offense is $250, and the third offense is $500,” Saucier said. “If any offenses occur beyond three offenses, that will result in points on their driver’s license.”
Saucier emphasized just how quickly a distracted driving situation can escalate. “Once you receive a message while driving, that’s what you’re still focusing on instead of driving,” he stressed. “If you’re traveling 30 mph, a vehicle is going 43 feet per second. The average text takes about 5 seconds, which would equal 215 feet. A lot of things can happen in 215 feet if the driver is distracted.”
“In Worcester, we have a community outreach team that’s addressed over 700,000 kids and the elderly,” Early said, “talking about internet safety and bullying, texting and driving. From the day I ran, I put a big focus on this, and we have gotten a lot of people to buy in.”
To spread awareness, Saucier said, “In coordination with the DA’s office, we put out a lot on social media. We’ve been putting out different content every day on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. All that information is going out so that we can continue to educate the public.”
The collaborative effort between law enforcement and other organizations has been productive so far. “Collaborating with Worcester County DA Joe Early has been going great,” Saucier noted. “He wanted to get this campaign relaunched, so I’m happy to work with him on combating this issue of distracted driving and save lives.”
Early added, “If we can get these kids to not have anything on their record, that would be great. I know a lot of them come from tough backgrounds, but to get them a job opportunity with nothing on their record, nothing holding them back, that would be special.”
Matt Olszewski is a freelance content and news writer based in Boston, MA. In his free time, Matt enjoys running, hiking or skiing. Matt is currently finishing up the MPH degree program at Tufts University. He can be reached at mattoskier@gmail.com
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