"This is not dissimilar to solving the problem of drunk driving," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood of the rise of texting while driving. The comment came just before the opening of a two-day summit on distracted driving convened by LaHood in Washington, DC.
As NPR reported this morning,
There is a growing litany of drivers distracted by cell phones and mobile devices who have been found responsible for crashes that have resulted in serious injuries and deaths.
LaHood says he is particularly concerned that young drivers are particularly prone to text while behind the wheel, creating one distraction too many for the most inexperienced of motorists.
The transportation secretary is not presuming on the outcome of the summit but notes with interest that the National Transportation Safety Board and some 500 companies have imposed a total ban on the use of mobile devices. LaHood does say that severe enforcement of any new rules will probably be necessary to change behaviors behind the wheel.
A total ban would have the unintended consequence of prohibiting access to useful tweets from departments of transportation. The twitter feed from the Washington State DOT is a useful companion on my commutes up and down the often troubled I-5 -- the information is often more timely than radio traffic reports. The 140 character dispatches are written in a cryptic and informal style that is easy to consume and not without personality -- as in, "Good news: US 97 Beebe bridge is open to one lane traffic." It would be a pity to forbid the use of something this helpful in the place where it can do the most good -- the cab of a car.
The twitter feed began to foreshadow the themes of the summit a week ago, "We ask that you "Know Before You Go" check our tweets before you travel or let passengers tweet. Please no texting & driving!"
And then there was this early this morning,
It will also be interesting to see how the summit defines distractions. Cell phones and mobile devices? Clearly. What about the radio, MP3 player or video monitor? Or a 48 ounce fountain drink propped precariously in a 16 ounce cup holder? Or a greasy drive-through breakfast sandwich that oozes egg onto your lap? Or the book propped up against the steering wheel? Or the vanity mirror on the sun visor used to aid in the application of lipstick during the morning commute?
LaHood says he wants to start a national conversation about the hazards of distracted driving. Good. But ought not that conversation and any new rules treat digital and analog distractions the same?
As NPR reported this morning,
Eighteen states and the nation's capital now have laws that ban sending or receiving text messages while driving. Six states and the District of Columbia prohibit all drivers from talking on hand-held cell phones; 21 states and D.C. bar novice drivers from all cell phone use. Proposed national legislation would reduce federal highway funds to states that fail to ban text messaging while driving.
There is a growing litany of drivers distracted by cell phones and mobile devices who have been found responsible for crashes that have resulted in serious injuries and deaths.
LaHood says he is particularly concerned that young drivers are particularly prone to text while behind the wheel, creating one distraction too many for the most inexperienced of motorists.
The transportation secretary is not presuming on the outcome of the summit but notes with interest that the National Transportation Safety Board and some 500 companies have imposed a total ban on the use of mobile devices. LaHood does say that severe enforcement of any new rules will probably be necessary to change behaviors behind the wheel.
A total ban would have the unintended consequence of prohibiting access to useful tweets from departments of transportation. The twitter feed from the Washington State DOT is a useful companion on my commutes up and down the often troubled I-5 -- the information is often more timely than radio traffic reports. The 140 character dispatches are written in a cryptic and informal style that is easy to consume and not without personality -- as in, "Good news: US 97 Beebe bridge is open to one lane traffic." It would be a pity to forbid the use of something this helpful in the place where it can do the most good -- the cab of a car.
The twitter feed began to foreshadow the themes of the summit a week ago, "We ask that you "Know Before You Go" check our tweets before you travel or let passengers tweet. Please no texting & driving!"
And then there was this early this morning,
RT @whitehouse DOT Distracted Driving Summit - watch live today & tomorrow. Starting now: http://bit.ly/idcZ2 #d2summit
It will also be interesting to see how the summit defines distractions. Cell phones and mobile devices? Clearly. What about the radio, MP3 player or video monitor? Or a 48 ounce fountain drink propped precariously in a 16 ounce cup holder? Or a greasy drive-through breakfast sandwich that oozes egg onto your lap? Or the book propped up against the steering wheel? Or the vanity mirror on the sun visor used to aid in the application of lipstick during the morning commute?
LaHood says he wants to start a national conversation about the hazards of distracted driving. Good. But ought not that conversation and any new rules treat digital and analog distractions the same?
I recently came across a blog post in consumer reports about a new free mobile phone application to help combat distracted driving called DriveSafe.ly that reads your texts and emails to you while you are driving.
It looked pretty interesting so I tried it. I have a BlackBerry and it has really helped me when I’m on the road because it keeps me from texting while driving. It works through my Bluetooth and it can actually send an auto-response to the sender. I’ve had some fun with customizing the auto-response messages. I’m not that technical but it’s easy to use. I recommend people checking out www.DriveSafe.ly
80% percent of all rear end collisions (the most frequent vehicle accident) are caused by driver inattention, following too closely, external distraction (talking on cell phones, shaving, applying makeup, fiddling with the radio or CD player, kids, texting, etc.) and poor judgement.
There's not much you can do about a rear end collision so I went out and got one of these sparebumper.com
I noticed a far amount of company owned vehicles have these 1800 hows my driving bumper stickers. Isn't this helping prevoke dangerous driving? Even if they don't grab there cell phone to call, grabbing a pen and writing down the number to call later is ju st as dangerous. I just find it ironic these companies with the bumber stickers is suppose to help removing dangerous driving when its actually worsening the sitution. Just my 2 cents. I think Roy Lahood should put ban on these stickers as well.