By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Sgt. Travis Lahann with the Hutchinson Police Department has some advice for the new drivers learning behind the wheel this summer.
"Obviously, be aware of your surroundings," Lahann said. "Try and forecast, if you can, what other drivers around you might be doing. I know sometimes that's hard and its something that you acquire with experience, but just trying to predict or be aware of those immediately around you and obviously all the traffic laws, your speed, turn signals, all that stuff is really important."
Maybe one of the most important things to learn at any age is to keep your focus on the road.
"The other most important thing for new drivers, especially teenagers is just distracted driving, making sure they don't have that cellphone in their hand or aren't distracted by passengers they might have in the car while they are still learning how to drive," Lahann said.
Stopping a vehicle on suspicion of texting and driving has some telltale signs.
"A lot of times you'll see a car that, it catches your attention because it might look like a drunk driver," Lahann said. "They might be swerving in their lane a little bit, they might be drifting off to the side and that's because they're not even looking at the road. They're looking at their cell phone. If you're stopped at a light, or if you're behind a vehicle and they are clearly staring at something in their hand and it's pretty obvious that they may be sitting through a green light or failing to recognize what's around them, that might be something that the officer might use to initiate a traffic stop."
It is still a violation of statute to text on the roadway, even if stopped at a red light.