Kansas patrol to crack down on texting while driving

The Kansas Highway Patrol is launching a 10-day initiative that emphasizes enforcement of a state ban on texting while driving.

The patrol said that starting Tuesday troopers would be looking for drivers who are violating the law and giving them citations. The initiative will overlap with the patrol’s Fourth of July initiatives to stop impaired drivers.

But the stepped-up enforcement of the texting ban will run through July 10.

Kansas law says that drivers may not manually type, send or read a written communication on a wireless device. The ban includes text messages, instant messages, or electronic mail.

Federal statistics show that texting while driving creates a crash risk 23 times greater than driving while not distracted.

This story was originally published July 1, 2014 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Kansas patrol to crack down on texting while driving."