Nation's Biggest Car Seller Targets Texting Scourge

WASHINGTON – Using his bully pulpit as chairman and CEO of AutoNation, the country's largest car-retailing chain, Michael Jackson calls for tougher laws against texting while driving.

Speaking at a recent safety seminar here sponsored by Edmunds.com, Jackson says his dealerships see the result of drivers texting while on the road in its auto-body shops every day.

“We need to make it against the law to text while driving,” he says.

AutoNation has been providing financial aid to the Broward County, FL, sheriff's office to distribute leaflets detailing the perils of texting while driving.

Jackson's firm also supports pending legislation in Florida, where its headquarters is located, to enact penalties for using cell phones and texting while driving.

At present, Florida has no prohibition against these practices.

The veteran auto industry executive, whose resume includes a stint as president of Mercedes-Benz of North America, makes his remarks on the same day AutoNation retailer Honda of Dulles, located in Sterling, VA, sold the chain's 8 millionth vehicle.

Jackson tore up the sales agreement and turned a Honda Fit over gratis to buyer Wendy Byrd Kang, a U.S. civil affairs specialist recently returned from deployment in Kabul, Afghanistan, to celebrate the milestone.

AutoNation’s Jackson calls for texting ban, higher fuel taxes.

It is the first time any auto retailer has sold more than 8 million vehicles in the industry's history. AutoNation, which was founded in 1996, now has 247 dealerships in 15 states.

In his seminar presentation, Jackson also urges the government to boost fuel taxes.

This would raise money to repair crumbling transportation infrastructure and drive car buyers to purchase more fuel-efficient vehicles, he suggests.

In addition, he urges the introduction of intelligent traffic signals as a way to reduce crashes and highway fatalities.

Jackson says proposing a rise in gasoline taxes is a strange move by a self-proclaimed Republican, but he passionately believes it would promote highway safety and reduce fuel imports.