Police are expected to issue thousands of tickets to drivers using cell phones in an enforcement effort aimed at reducing the number of New York City car accidents caused by distracted driving.

The NYPD will begin a 24-hour crackdown on Tuesday. Drivers caught using handheld phones in a moving vehicle will face a $130 fine, NY1 reported. A similar enforcement effort in March resulted in nearly 7,000 motorists being issued tickets.

Using a hand-held cell phone is illegal in the State of New York.

Officials report that more than 600 summonses were issued every day in 2009 to drivers using cell phones.

As we reported last week on our New York Injury Lawyer Blog, more than 6,000 people a year are killed and 600,000 injured in car accidents caused by distracted driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports teens are among the most at risk, particularly for text messaging. Nationwide, traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for young people ages 15 to 20.

U.S. Transportation Ray LaHood recently cited the case of an Upstate New York college student who died in a rollover crash blamed on her text messaging while behind the wheel. "Crashes caused by distracted drivers are 100 percent preventable," LaHood said. "It's all about the choices we make when we get behind the wheel."

Our New York City injury lawyers urge you to spend some time at the government's distracted driving website and to talk to your teenagers about the dangers of distracted driving.

Other forms of distracted driving include:

-Eating and drinking

-Grooming or applying makeup

-Talking to passengers

-Reading, including maps

-Using a PDA or navigation system

-Watching a video

-Changing the station or using other on-board electronics