Finally, the California Highway Patrol addresses “video game-styled driving”
by Larry Buford
Talk about a recipe for disaster; are lawmakers really paying attention to what’s going on? Finally, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) has implemented what should have been done years ago to help mitigate the ingredients of a recipe for disaster:
1. In May 2025, the California Highway Patrol announced that it is deploying new specially marked patrol vehicles across the state, in hopes of cracking down on what the agency calls “video game-styled driving.” (May 8, 2025 Online Source)
2. On January 1, 2023, a new California law went into effect – jaywalking is now legal! First introduced in 2018 by San Francisco Assembly member Phil Ting, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2147 called the “Freedom to Walk Act.” The new law decriminalizes walking outside of a crosswalk unless poor judgement has placed a pedestrian and a vehicle in immediate danger.
3. According to The Zebra – the nation’s leading insurance comparison website – texting while driving is the cause of roughly 1.6 million accidents each year. In another recent study, 60% of people texting while walking veered off course; incident or injury amounts to nearly 12,000 per year.
4. Speed: According to the Public Health Department, death from Fentanyl use in Los Angeles County alone rose from 109 in 2016 to 1504 in 2021 and continues to rise. Cannabis (or “weed”) is legal in California for medicinal purposes as well as recreational use (for adults) and has become more easily accessible.
5. During the spike in gas prices, the Biden administration went into the oil reserves twice to try and accommodate demand and to temper pricing, but there was no caveat: Americans received no message of gas rationing like “slow down,” or “drive only when necessary.” People continue to drive wild and free (video game-style) with no regard to gas rationing and hit and run accidents are on the rise. It’s been reported that in Los Angeles alone, a hit and run occurs every 18 minutes. Los Angeles categorizes 50 percent of traffic accidents as hit and run, compared to the national average of 11 percent.
What the CHP has done at last, should have been done first. Perhaps it would also help if automakers included warning signs on their high-performance vehicles like “Not recommended for drivers under age 21.”
Now, if only the news media would stop giving high speed chase suspects their moment of glory; and law enforcement would stop the dangerous on-the-ground engagement, our roadways would be even more safe.
Larry Buford is a contributing writer. Author of “Things Are Gettin’ Outta Hand” and “Book To The Future” (Amazon). Email: LBuford8101@hotmail.com
