As part of this being California’s first Distracted Driving Awareness Month, law enforcement in El Dorado County will be holding zero tolerance days for cell phone use and texting. A ticket for violating either the hands free or no texting law costs a minimum of $159, and subsequent tickets are $279.

Distracted driving is a serious traffic safety concern that puts everyone on the road at risk, joining speeding and alcohol as leading factors in fatal and serious injury crashes, according to South Lake Tahoe police Sgt. Shannon Laney.

Starting April 4 and throughout the month, South Lake Tahoe officer will join more than 225 local agencies, plus 103 CHP commands conducting zero tolerance enforcements.

Drivers who use hand-held devices are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves, Laney said.