How texting while walking could land you in jail

TEXTING while walking could be banned in one US state, with those caught doing it facing up to 15 days in jail.

Under the proposed ‘distracted walking’ law, ‘petextrians’ in New Jersey would be given a £35 ($50) fine if spotted by a police officer, with persistent offenders risking jail time.

Pedestrians would instead be required to use hands-free devices like drivers do.

State assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt, who proposed the law said: ‘Distracted pedestrians, like distracted drivers, present a potential danger to themselves and drivers on the road.’

The bid comes after research found accidents involving pedestrians distracted by their mobiles accounted for 11,101 injuries in the US from 2000 through 2011. However similar bids in New York, Arkansas, Illinois and Nevada have all failed in recent years.

Those using their phone while walking take longer to cross the road and are more likely to ignore traffic lights or neglect to look both ways, according to a study by Ohio University. The problem is particularly prevalent among teenagers, who told researchers they think it is fine to cross the road while texting or using the internet.

In the UK, one in ten people have suffered injuries due to tripping, falling or being in a road accident while on their mobile phone.

And the National Accident Helpline reports that 13 per cent of Britons have walked into someone or something when checking their phone, rising to nearly half among 16 to 24-year-olds.

In 2014, China introduced the world’s first separate lane for pedestrians who use their phones while walking in the city of Chongqing to stop them colliding with other people.