Miami Creates Lane for Texting Drivers-Fiction!
Summary of eRumor:
The Miami Dade Expressway Authority (MDX) has created an express with protective bumpers for texting drivers.
The Truth:
A fake news website is behind this false report.
The Plantain, a satire website that focuses on all things Florida, started the rumor with a story headlined, “Miami-Dade to Create Freeway ‘Texting Lane’ to Accommodate Millennial Drivers.”
The story reports:
The Miami Dade Expressway Authority (MDX) announced today that it has plans to create a bumpered “texting lane” along the Dolphin Expressway.
“This is a necessary step we must take as a community to ensure public safety,” said MDX spokeswoman Anne Hinga, noting that educational campaigns about the dangers of texting while driving have failed to curb the ubiquitous behavior.
“Our roads are filled with millennials raised in front of a cellphone screen. We cannot realistically expect these young drivers not to text and drive,” said Ms. Hinga. “The bumpered texting lane is our attempt to mitigate the dangers of texting while driving and is a plan that we believe will save thousands of lives.”
MDX says it has entered into a memorandum of understanding with a national road consultant to draft plans for installing bumpers along each side of the middle lane of the Dolphin, an improvement expected to cost the County upwards of $75 million dollars. The Authority says it has already started to assess the viability of installing additional texting lanes on other County thoroughfares.
The story quickly made its way around social media, and taken out of context, many falsely believe that a “texting lane” had actually been created for Millennial drivers.
But the Plantain clearly identifies its as a “Miami’s preeminent satirical news outlet” — which means that it’s stories are for entertainment value only on its About page:
The Plantain is Miami’s preeminent satirical news outlet. You’re probably reading some posts and coming up with your own ideas for fake news stories about Miami. Well, please email ideas or fully developed articles to [email protected]. This website was created as a labor of love and is not a business and is hardly a hobby, so please don’t expect to get paid.