Several bills were recently signed into law that affect many drivers on our streets, and though they might make life a little more inconvenient, they are common sense laws that should have been on the books much earlier.

Texting while driving will be banned, starting July 1. While this seems like an obvious thing not to do — you’re 23 times more likely to crash while texting than while simply driving — many drivers still do, fully knowing the risk.

Although it may be difficult to enforce, just having the ban in place will do much to discourage this dangerous practice.

Another change — one that takes effect immediately — is that seatbelts must now be worn in pickup trucks, just like in other passenger vehicles.

Although the exception came from agricultural use, the reality of daily life is that there are just as many pickups in suburbs and city streets as passenger vehicles. Georgia was one of only two states in the country that did not require seatbelts in pickups, and more than two-thirds of pickup truck-related deaths resulted from passengers not wearing a seat belt in an accident.

We applaud both changes, and hope these will make the streets just a little bit safer for drivers and passengers.