Missouri truck driver Sandy Long drove along Interstate 94 near Battle Creek, Mich., Thursday morning, embroiled once again in a familiar battle with texting motorists.

"It could've been ugly," she said of an incident she witnessed on the Michigan freeway. "We run into that a lot."

It's a constant concern for the Marceline, Mo., trucking veteran, whose hauling duties sometimes summon her to the St. Joseph Packaging and Johnson Controls plants.

Ms. Long has been an over-the-road trucker for more than three decades and currently works for Weston Transportation of North Kansas City, Mo. For more than five years, she has been an online freelance writer on safety and other trucking industry issues.

Trying to navigate around multitasking traffic remains a challenge for Ms. Long and others. Texting is one of the most recent forms of distracted driving that states such as Missouri are attempting to address. A new law bans drivers under 21 from text messaging while operating a vehicle in the state.

Safety analysts continue to stress the dangers of such impaired driving habits, linking them to highway fatalities and other accidents.

"I'm certainly against texting while you drive," Ms. Long said. "I don't see too many truckers who text while they drive."

Many times she's noticed drivers who have laptop computers propped up on their steering wheels.

"I watch them very close," Ms. Long said.

Careless and imprudent cruising also plays havoc on the roadways, she said. That definition includes cutting off traffic, zooming in too close to pass, and using the rear of trucks as windbreaks.

"It's highly dangerous," she added. "I don't want anyone to think I'm complacent about safety."

The Missouri Department of Transportation is part of a five-year-old coalition with insurance companies, law enforcement, emergency medical services, engineers and educators that focuses on traffic safety, according to Tony McGaughy, the agency's assistant district engineer based in St. Joseph.

The group tries to enhance safety - especially among youths - through programs on seat belts and other topics. MoDOT wants to emphasize safety to the traveling public, Mr. McGaughy said.

"The biggest thing has been the education part," he said.

The dangers of texting and other forms of inattentive driving also occupy the coalition's concerns.

"We continue to see the same type of accidents," he said. "It only takes a second to lose control."

Inattention in all its forms continues to be the annual leading cause of accidents, said Sgt. Sheldon Lyon, a spokesman for the Missouri State Highway Patrol's Troop H. All officials contacted by the News-Press say they know of no tracking efforts so far regarding the onset and enforcement of Missouri's texting ban.

Mr. Lyon said it's still unclear precisely how the new ban will be enforced. Obtaining search warrants for phone records, for instance, could be one of the hurdles to surmount.

The St. Joseph Safety and Health Council works with driving offenders assigned by the local court system, said executive director Gerald Duty, who taught driver education in the early 1970s. One program attempts to rehabilitate young drivers, who are more at risk for wrecks and most often beset by peer pressure while driving with friends, through behavior modification.

"Cell phones are a real issue," Mr. Duty said. "Texting is a real issue. They should've made it (Missouri's law) universal."

Whether a mobile phone is hands-free does not matter, he added.

"It's a different mindset," he said. "You listen different and your mind processes that differently."

Failure to use turn signals is another common poor driving practice, Mr. Duty said.

"People just don't do it," he said. "They don't think about it."

The council also teaches driver improvement and defensive driving concepts in a program aimed at those who commit any offenses beyond moving violations, such as failure to stop for stop signs. A third level deals with drivers and ascending degrees of alcohol-related driving offenses.

Road rage is another problem, Mr. Duty said. The tailgater and habitual late arrival belong to this class, he added. Speeders and slow pokes also cause problems.

"Part of it goes back to control," he said. "What they (offending drivers) don't realize is that (other) person doesn't know them. ... Some drivers try to get even."

Maj. Mike Babcock, who supervises the road patrol division for the Buchanan County Sheriff's Department, also cited cell phone texting and road rage as two of the most prevalent driver issues deputies typically encounter.

"People should really try to control their temper," he said.

Troop H reported 30 traffic-related fatalities for the year through Oct. 22, a 34 percent decrease in comparison to the same period in 2008 - when 46 fatalities were listed.

Call the Safety and Health Council weekdays at 233-3330 for more information on driving improvement and traffic safety programs.

Ray Scherer can be reached at rscherer@npgco.com.