New Jersey town issues fines for texting while crossing the road

It is illegal to use a hand-held phone when driving in the UK but the American's have taken talking and texting while in motion one step further.

Now someone can be fined for ‘texting' or playing with their mobile phones while crossing the road in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Police in the town say doing this constitutes jaywalking, and have so far issued 117 tickets to residents crossing the street while glued to their mobiles, resulting in fines of $85.

Jaywalking is defined as recklessly crossing the road, and in the US is a traffic safety violation.

According to Fort Lee local newspaper The Record, the move shouldn't come as a huge surprise to residents. It said that already three pedestrians had died in the city this year and "pedestrians contributed to 20 per cent of all traffic fatalities in New Jersey in 2010".

So following a short educational and warning period about the dangers of being distracted when using a mobile phone and walking across the road, the authorities upped the ante. To get their message cross they have begun issuing on-the-spot tickets for people using their phone when crossing the street.