Town police plan an enforcement crackdown on distracted driving, focusing on motorists who use handheld cellphones to talk and also those who text while driving.

Police Sergeant Aaron Bahamonde, who heads the police department’s traffic enforcement unit, said the project will run from April 13 to April 27.

Police plan to use traditional measures and innovative tactics to enforce the distracted driving laws while participating in the national enforcement project known as, “U Drive, U Text, U Pay,” he said.

The high-visibility project involves the strict enforcement of existing laws that prohibit speaking on a handheld cellphone and also texting while driving.

Such behavior is “illegal and irresponsible,” the sergeant said.

“People who break our state’s cellphone laws will be stopped and fined. If you drive and use your cellphone, you will pay,” Sgt Bahamonde said.

“For those of you who say that driving and using your handheld [cellphone] for texting or making phone calls is an ‘epidemic,’ we believe enforcement of our state cellphone law is the ‘cure,’” he said.

According to police, the risk of an accident or near-accident among novice drivers increases when secondary tasks are performed, such as texting and using cellphones.

“Using a handheld cellphone…[including] texting and making calls while driving, requires motorists to take their eyes off the road, hands off the wheel, and mind off the task of driving. It creates the proverbial ‘perfect storm’ for a crash, and no one has the right to put another person’s life at risk like that,” according to Sgt Bahamonde.

The sergeant said on April 7 that the enforcement campaign will run from 8 am on April 13, to 8 am on April 27. Police will enforce the distracted driving law throughout town, with a focus on the areas which carry heavier traffic, he said.

Police plan to use unmarked vehicles and officers in plainclothes to aid them in finding motorists violating the law, he said.

The fine for a first offense is $150. It rises to $300 for a second offense, and increases to $500 for a third offense. Police will know whether motorists whom they have stopped for apparent violations have previous offenses through electronic record checks, the sergeant said.

Also, the fines for violations which occur within road construction zones are $300 for a first offense, $600 for a second offense, and $1,000 for a third offense, he said.