Is 'Text-Walking' the New Drunk Driving? NJ Town Has Fined More than 100 People in the Past Month for the Offense

Fort Lee, New Jersey is taking early action against what the Daily Mail is terming "text-walking."  What is the city doing?  Simple-- fining the offenders, in an effort to get them to stop.

Earlier this month, a viral video demonstrated just how dangerous "cell phone oblivion" can be:

Fox explains:

Police in Fort Lee., N.J., say people are constantly putting themselves at risk of being hit by cars because they do not pay attention while walking.

Local Sue Choe admitted to WTXF that she texts and walks "all the time," but added, "When I walk, I still look around. I'm not constantly looking down."

But cops say it is pedestrians like Choe who are the biggest jaywalking culprits.

"It's a big distraction. Pedestrians aren't watching where they're going. They're not aware," Fort Lee Police Department (FLPD) Chief Thomas Ripoli said at a news conference.

The FLPD is stepping up patrols looking out for "dangerous" walkers who are not paying attention or obeying the rules of the road but said pamphlets were handed out to warn people about the crackdown.

Offenders can be charged $85 per offense -- the fine for jaywalking. In the last month and a half, 117 tickets were issued, according to the report.

The video, below, shows how locals feel about the measure: