Eyes on the road? What a concept

With all the distractions available to drivers these days, one might wonder whether DWM - "driving while multitasking" - has replaced DWI as the chief hazard on the highways.

A new study finds it's plenty dangerous: Nearly eight in 10 collisions or near-crashes involved a lack of attention by drivers in the moments before impact.

It's not just reaching for your coffee that's the chief diversion for motorists these days. Now people are dialing in their iPod play lists, checking their e-mail, adjusting DVDs, instant messaging, fiddling with GPS systems and chatting on cell phones - all while driving moving vehicles.

Add these technological wonders to the traditional vehicular pastimes of eating, talking and grooming and it almost seems a miracle that drivers get anywhere without crashing.

The federal study found, for instance, that the risk of a crash increases three-fold when you're dialing a cell phone.

If you're reaching for a moving object, that increases your risk of a crash by nine times, according to researchers.

In short, driving while distracted is a risky business not only for you but for other motorists on the road. While there no doubt will be a clamor for more laws to regulate vehicular inattention, this isn't something that can be effectively addressed by legislation.

The solution is personal and simple: Unplug all those devices and gizmos and pay attention to the road.

ROAD WOES of a different sort have cropped up on Kalispell's North Meridian Road, where a long-awaited road reconstruction project has had a big impact on businesses.

With a section of the road closed at least until July, some businesses are feeling the pinch from being cut off from customers.

There are two lessons to be learned from the Meridian situation.

One is that businesses, especially those that depend on random or walk-in traffic, need to be creative to attract customers and entice them through the construction zone.

The other is that better communication is needed between construction contractors and the commercial sector so people know what's coming and can prepare for the challenges of road projects.

It's election day on Tuesday - not the primary election (that's in June) but school election day.

In addition to a few contested trustee races, some school districts are asking for voter approval for extra tax levies.

There are special circumstances involved in many of the levy requests, which come on the heels of the Legislature's infusion of extra money for schools.

Kalispell school officials, for example, are asking for an additional $447,286 to help pay for the transition to the new Glacier High School and expanded middle school. Columbia Falls wants $386,806 largely for new textbooks and technology upgrades.

And West Glacier seeks $15,000 because, unlike larger school districts, its funding from the state has actually decreased.

Other schools are asking voters to approve a variety of money requests for everything from technology to equipment to building needs.

We generally support school levy requests and we urge voters to carefully consider the quality of their children's education when they vote on increasing taxes.