“No text message or phone call is worth the risk”

My heart goes out to everyone that has ever died in a horrific vehicle accident. I cannot imagine those few seconds of horror.

This is such a challenging topic – regulators vs. consumers and the industry. I completely understand and know both sides of the argument though.

However, as a driver who texts and calls while driving – I refuse to be told to ”put the phone down”. I do put the phone down when I dont think it is safe (heavy, fast moving congestion….or in dangerous weather conditions) and I always text when not in motion at a red light. There are too many distractions – take away the cell phone, then take away the radio, gps unit, fast food, and other passengers. It angers me as a responsible driver that I should be told not to do things because there are drivers who lack common sense. I drive 75+ miles everyday for work and I’ve probably driven hundreds of thousands of miles. I’ve seen plenty of horrific accidents occur, and I’ve been in a few myself (thankfully, no one was ever hurt and I was never at fault). These accidents were never caused by distracted drivers – just completely oblivious ones.

There is a difference (and not to be insulting to anyone)….but there are drivers who are distracted – phone rings, trying to locate a radio station, gps unit is reading directions, grabbing for that last fry at the bottom of the bag…..and then there are oblivious drivers – those who cannot multitask and who are so oblivious to the world around them. Those are the people who are causing accidents (and who are being labeled as distracted drivers)- those who drive in the left lane on or off their phones, driving 60mph while there is a line of 50+ cars trying to get them to merge over to the right lane. Those who don’t use turn signals, those who cannot multitask between talking on the phone and driving.

Oblivious people do not even have to be driving – you interact with them in stores and in the public in general. They cannot process complex, or logical things.

I need my phone. I need to communicate. I do not want the government to tell me ”put down the phone” because someone idiot can’t drive and process the gas pedal and steering wheel at the same time. The police have too much going on right now – they have to deal with criminals and those breaking driving laws. They also have failed to stop drunk drivers despite all their efforts. Give the cops a break and let them focus on those who are posing real dangers on our roads – like those who are intoxicated.

It’s amazing how ignorant people are of the laws affecting them . . . .17 years ago every single state had laws against impaired driving or driving while distracted or reckless driving – and all of those laws applied to this instance.

You do NOT need a special law using the words of whatever it is you are concerned with in order for someone to be doing something illegal.

Its similar to the gun laws – the last time I checked it was illegal to shoot someone. Thus, you do not not need laws around who can own guns, when you can carry them, how to carry them, what to carry etc etc etc. All that does is create a false sense of security and huge bureaucracy. If its illegal to shoot someone or use a gun in a crime, then the penalty needs to fit the crime – how hard is this to figure out? All of these laws have not prevented felons or mentally ill from getting guns – they have simply added more crimes you can charge someone with – and none of them seem to do any good since there is a plea to a lesser crime and the laws do not protect people. We do NOT need separate laws for every little thing.

According to several studies, drivers talking on their cellphone are as impaired as someone who has a BAC of .1. That is over the legal limit and if you’ve had that much to drink, you are subject to legal action. Why do people think that it isn’t okay to drive impaired from alcohol but that it is okay to be impaired by using a cellphone? So if you think that it is okay to drive while impaired by cellphone usage, I guess you think that drunk driving is okay too.

As for the notion that it will be the same as the 55mph speed limit, in terms of enforcement, the same could be said about lower the legal limit for drunk driving. If there wasn’t anyone else on the road, I would care if you were on the cellphone or driving drunk however there are other people out there and you are putting them at risk. Is that phone call that important?

As to Carvers point we could have easily put up penalties for violations of a distracted driving law that involve alcohol and drug use – I will say that a prosecutor can find a law to use if they need to – claimed a specialized law is necessary belies the fact that law is intended to implement the Golden Rule – whereas do no harm to others is the ultimate reason for all law – and all law can be distilled down to that basic tenet.

I have a friend who lost her leg when a distracted driver talking on her cell phone pulled around a car in front that was stopped at a red light and hit my friend who was in the intersection on her motorcycle. (Yes — the driver pulled AROUND the car in front that was stopped for the red light. She said she was talking on the phone and didn’t notice why the car in front of her was stopped.)

A couple of months ago I was at a bus stop on a busy city thoroughfare and my view was of the white lines where cars stop for the red light. My bus was late so I had a half hour waiting, and in boredom I started counting how many drivers had cell phones to their ears. In a 20 minute period I counted 70% of drivers had cell phones against their ears. I did not count the number of people who were obviously texting — texters love red lights so they tended to stop even when the light was green, and stay after the light turned green.

I saw a couple of distracted drivers make bad calls — stopping short of hitting the car in front of them, or almost running the red light. I was shocked by my short survey, and it made me realize why the public education campaign is important.

I read that there are driverless cars being tested. I’m kinda hoping this technology happens sooner rather than later — I have little faith in people taking cell phone ban seriously.

I try to keep my phone conversations to an absolute minimum while driving. My friends know I do not make it a habit to drive while on the phone.
I have seen people eating while driving, putting on makeup and fooling with the radio, and maybe one or two of them posed a hazard. I’ve been driving for 27 years. I’ve watched people drive on my college campus, in small towns and big cities, on rural roads and high-speed interstates.
In the past 10 years or so, 99 percent of the truly STUPID, careless, reckless actions I’ve observed people commit while behind the wheel happen while they are on their cell phones. They run red lights, tailgate, stop in the middle of the road, drift into the other lane, etc. And I can see them, hands to their ears, gabbing on those phones.
A friend was in a fender bender, where she was rear-ended, while trying to merge into traffic. She stopped and waited on the other driver to get out of his car. He was talking on his phone as he got out and said something like, “Um, yeah, I have to go, I guess. I think I just hit somebody. Yeah, with the car. No, she’s standing by the car, so she’s not dead or anything…” True story.
Some people are indeed like Kevin, and can multitask. They can do any number of things and still give their full attention to the road. However, the vast majority are NOT like Kevin. I’m one of them, but then again, I have sense enough to stay off the phone when I’m driving.
Because most people are not like Kevin, and because most people will not admit they are not like Kevin, these laws are necessary, IMHO. People know alcohol impairs driving ability, but there are still laws against it, because there are a sufficient number of nitwits who insist they drive even better after they’ve had one or two, in spite of the number of people killed by drunk drivers. By the same token, there is no doubt that talking or texting while driving impairs most people in a way that listening to the radio or talking to a passenger does not. But people who are impaired when talking and driving will not admit they are, and so they talk and drive. Eventually, tragically, they will probably be involved in a serious accident.
Yes, enforcement is unquestionably a problem. But we have to keep firmly in mind that driving is NOT a right! It is a privilege and privileges can be regulated! My privilege to drive requires me to acknowledge there are other drivers on the road, and I must consider how my driving affects their safety. When I get behind the wheel, I accept the responsibility that my actions affect others, and must accept the burden that I cannot always do as I like behind the wheel, because it is not safe. That’s all part of being a grown-up and doing the mature, responsible thing, even if it’s not the convenient thing. Rant over, here’s the soapbox.

When my children were old enough to drive, I told them “If I catch you talking on the cell or texting while driving, you lose the car AND the phone for a long time.” I’ve been in too many close calls with people (often in SUVs oddly enough) trying to turn left while talking on a cell, or driving erratically while they attempted to drive w/ elbows and text. Each time a driver looks down to read or compose a text, that’s several seconds when their eyes are off the road. Several hundred feet can probably be traveled in that time and that’s just not safe. As for equating talking/texting on cells to singing with the radio, etc… I don’t take my eyes off the road to sing along w/ the radio, nor do I take my hands off the wheel to sing…. unless I’m singing “the itsy bitsy spider”….

I very rarely talk on the phone while driving and I never ever text or get on the internet while driving. I can easily change my radio station/volume without looking from my steering wheel. I can reach down for a sip of water without my eyes leaving the road in front of me. If I have to put a new CD in or devote any amount of attention to that task, I wait until I’m stopped at a light. I don’t want anything keeping me from being able to react to the light that changes quickly or the car that stops suddenly in front of me. I even wait to check text messages I might have received until I’m stopped. No text/call/task is that important that I can’t wait to stop. I know that I can’t react as quickly when talking on the phone and I know that I can’t drive as well when I don’t give my full attention to my driving. So I give my full attention to my driving.

However, I can’t count the number of times that I’ve seen someone who can’t go straight in their lane or are going 15 miles below the speed limit and when I get up next to or around them, they’re talking on their cell phone or obviously texting. People say all the time that they can drive and text at the same time, but they don’t realize how much slower they drive/react when they’re doing that. One time, there was a woman ahead of me putting on mascara while driving. She was easily driving 10 miles below the speed limit and not paying attention to the road, which wasn’t a safe situation for anyone around her. It takes me 30 seconds to put my mascara on at home. Doing it while driving just isn’t necessary. Another time, my family was in a turning lane at a stop light behind a woman who was putting make up on. She sat through the entire arrow until my Dad honked the horn at her.

When you’re driving a vehicle that weighs several thousand pounds minimum, is it really worth the risk to see how good of a multi-tasker you are? A law could very well make people think twice if only to avoid a ticket.

I am for less government in our lives. But laws that regulate public safety like thses are important. Using a phone in the car has been provn to be much more distracting (and deadly) than using a radio, eating or things like that in a car. If you fools that openly admit texting and talking in your cars kill any member of my family God help you. The Police will be the least of your worries.

For those of you who believe using a cell phone is a distraction equal to digging for the last french fry in the bag or adjusting the radio think again. Studies have shown that the cognitive functions required for phone conversations create heightened impairment over other forms of common distractions. Interestingly, researchers have found that overhearing a cell phone conversation creates the same type of risk — it has to do with the brain trying to make sense of one sided conversations.

—–> The National Safety Council estimates more than 1 out of every 4 motor vehicle crashes involves cell phone use at the time of the crash.

Drunks always rationalize their ability to drive while intoxicated, too. Anyone who gives a “yes, but I…” reply to the need to stop cell phone use whilst driving is living in a fools paradise and putting other peoples’ lives at risk.

One good collection of studies can be found here http://bit.ly/h1eX0J.

It’s illegal to talk on a cell phone while driving in California. But, I swear, almost every time we see someone driving in an irregular way, they’ve got a cell phone glued to their ear. It’s obvious to anyone watching them drive that they are NOT paying attention. I would apply this same observation to anyone who is texting. Responsible multi-tasking in this arena is an oxymoron.

I hate to say it but this is simple human nature. The penalties for driving while using the cell phone is insignificant. It’s felony to smack someone with a baseball bat but for some reason it isn’t to operate 4,000 pounds of machinery in an oblivious manner.

I talk on the phone while I drive. Why? because it’s $25 if I get caught. I am not proud of that.

What about distracted drivers who AREN’T talking on cell phones? I have a friend who turn around constantly when driving to sort out her infant in the backseat. She never hit anyone, but she was constantly distracted and trying to either pick up a bottle or pacifier, toy, etc. At what point does making a law for everything become cumbersome? When do we draw the line and stand up for civil liberties? That isn’t to say that what happened to the boy in the story wasn’t tragic, or that having a law against driving and talking on the phone won’t help at all. But perhaps always being reactionary to situations isn’t the best policy. These issues need discussion and debate.

Unfortunately, I think people can’t live without their electronic connection to others, which is why so many are texting and making calls while driving. I see this especially with the high school students I mentor.

When our organization imposed a rule that the students couldn’t take their cell phones on a weekend retreat, many of them dropped out because they didn’t want to be “cut off” from their friends for the weekend. They were convinced they’d miss out on something. That’s why many of them tell me that they text while they drive, even though they KNOW it’s dangerous and is not worth the risk. I think it’s a deeper problem with our society in general that no law can fix.

I also don’t think lawmakers would create a law that would impose a penalty harsh enough to get a vast majority of people to stop.

I was nearly hit in my car by a teen TEXTING while trying to
drive. Also, a woman on a cel, smoking and driving a small
truck with one hand. What can be so important that you
MUST call on the phone? Make it a law. No phone; no text
while driving. Or, if you must call, PULL OFF THE ROAD!I have
a cel but never use it.

People caught driving in B.C. Canada using handheld cellphones and other electronic devices behind the wheel can expect a $167 fine.

Most drivers think they are good drivers. They also think they can multitask while driving. Controlled simulated tests in labs have proven beyond any doubt that this is not the case.

I have a friend I refuse to drive with her. The last time I drove with her was from Victoria to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island and back. When her phone rang on The Malhat, (it was in her handbag down on the floor next to my feet on the passenger’s side), she reached down to extricate it from her bag. This took many seconds as she had to locate it from her bag. While she was talking on the phone, she was following a lowbed truck up an incline and following it very closely and the rain from the road kept spitting up onto her windshield. She spoke over 10 minutes. The topic was over a friend’s internet male friend asking for $1,000 because he had been kidnapped and needed ransom money to free him.!! I spoke up at this time, not only over her distracted driving but the stupidity of even talking while driving over the stupidity of the call. Needless to say, I rarely see her anymore as I made my point clear. Ironically, on that same trip, she lost her cell phone and accused me of taking it.!! She did eventually find it. She had left it at one of the places she had visited in Nanaimo. This person thinks she is a good and responsible driver. Go figure, huh

Any “data” coming out of the Highway Loss Data Institute needs to be considered in light of their affiliation with and allegiance to the insurance industry. Studies by other, less-biased groups, have produced different results. On an almost daily basis I see under-speed-limit vehicles holding up traffic in the passing lane, and invairiably the driver has a cell phone up to his/her ear. The police need to start enforcing the laws and pulling the licenses of repeat offenders. The fines in Connecticut alone could probably balance our state budget!

First, may I say I do not use a cel phone. Recently I was in
a shopping mall parking lot. As I drove past a truck, the
woman had her left hand on the steering wheel, was smoking
a cigarette and holding her cel with her right hand. I stepped on the gas (I drive a small 2 seater-sports car) and passed her
quickly before she backed out of her parking spot on a slope.
Dangerous, yes! Should cels and texting be BANNED. YES!

IMHO, the biggest problem is we (South Carolina) give driver’s licenses out like candy. The net result is people behind the wheel who have absolutely no business operating a motor vehicle.

I’ve flown in small aircraft where I was on the cockpit radio loop, and if you think holding a conversation in your car is bad, try listening to the radio in your ears, talking with ATC, co-pilot, and potentially passengers, and using both hands and feet on controls all while constantly scanning the windows for other aircraft. It’s a lot of work, but you either learn to do it right, or you don’t pilot an aircraft. Same should be true with driving — learn to do it right, or don’t do it at all.

Most distracted driving accidents I’ve witnessed were due to a driver distracted because they were trying to avoid somebody who didn’t have any business behind the wheel on that road*. They were so destracted trying to avoid hitting somebody they ended up in a wreck anyway. And, the person who *really* caused the wreck merrily drove away because they didn’t get hit.

* Pretty much every week, I pass somebody who nearly wrecks because they can’t merge worth a darn… including coming to a dead stop on the entrance ramp. And it’s a 50/50 chance somebody doesn’t understand how a 4-way stop works — thankfully wrecks are rare, I drive a compact so I give right-of-way anyway. Ignoring oncoming traffic while making left hand turns… I could go on an on. Even my girlfriend from halfway across the country can’t believe how bad the drivers are down here. I’ve seen 12 year olds driving tractors (with manual transmissions) who drive better.

Did anyone actually read Kevin’s (above) comment? He said he texted while STOPPED at a red light! Do you all you nanny-types think that is dangerous too? Maybe you should go home and hide under your beds til your life is over!

I definitely think we should pass laws against careless driving for ANY reason. (cue Emily Litella voice) What? We already do? We have laws against that? Oh, we don’t need any more laws then. Never mind!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emily_Litella

@Carrie: You said “FTR, Kevin said he always texts when he is NOT in motion at a red light.”
OH, I see, so it’s OK to stop paying attention to the road and the cars around you while you’re in the driver’s seat sitting at a traffic light. So he can’t know immediately that the light has changed. And he wouldn’t have been looking to see the old lady crossing the street but didn’t quite make it across before the light changed, so when the guy behind him honks because he didn’t go when the light changed and then he jumps to his accelerator (a natural instinct) and runs over the old lady, that’s OK. SO WE ONLY NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO THE ROAD WHEN THE LIGHT IS GREEN??

Oh my God, no wonder so many people get killed in car accidents. This country is full of unconscionable morons. And quite a few of them seem to be right here in this forum.

I certainly hope that the morons are only here because this forum usually deals with AIR TRAFFIC and those morons can take a taxi to the airport and let someone else fly the plane. Because it’s certainly too scary to know that these people are on the road “in control” of a multi-ton weapon.

Of course I can multitask, it is everyone else that has the problems.

Anything you do while driving distracts you, even if it is just talking to your passenger or listening to the radio station. Some people can handle these minor distractions better than others but they still take a portion, even a small piece, of your attention. Part of the problem is that everyone is so used to doing them that they discount them as a distraction.

Anything that keeps you from paying 100% of your attention can contribute to an accident.

If you remember your old drivers ed class, it takes about 3/4 second to recognize a hazzard and another 3/4 second to react. Some people take less, many take more especially if they are doing other things. Driving at 55 MPH means that you will travel 88 feet every second so that extra 1/2 second you dont recognize a hazzard because you were doing something means another 44 feet of distance to drag a body you just ran over.

Just because you have not had an accident yet does not mean that (the radio -your friend -texting- changing shoes) didn’t distract you, it only means that you have not pushed your luck hard enough.

The laws are written because some people don’t think and others don’t care until they get caught. You can not compare it to drunk driving or sleepless driving or bad maintance or anything else. Its not better or worse to kill someone while driving drunk as it is while driving distracted.

Phones, CB’s, car radios, GPS should all be unable to be used while driving the same way that watching TV while driving is. For everyone except myself and that guy flying around with the big “S” on his cape.

@Kara – thanks for saying what I was thinking as I read these responses.

@Kevin – the arrogance that goes along with your posting is unbelievable, at best, irresponsible, at worst. If you need your phone to communicate (and none of us are feeling you use it for games only) then PULL OVER! You’re childish “No one can tell me what to do” reaction to laws that require you pay attention while you drive pretty much told me everything I needed to know about you.

I had the bad luck to be behind someone in a pickup that was texting while driving. I was taking my son to school and traffic was heavy enough it was really unsafe for this guy to be doing anything BUT driving. He crossed the line so many times, nearly missing not just other cars but a school bus full of kids, that by the time I called 911 to report his erratic driving, they had already received several other calls. I was just the first one to be able to give them not just a full description but the license plate. Using my GPS in my phone, the police were able to nail down my location and get to the guy. I pulled over to be able to negate any denials the guy might give. Turns out I didn’t have to do so. Imagine the incredulity of both the highway patrol and myself when the guy pulled over, rolled down his window and then he made the highway patrolman WAIT while he finished his text message.

Kevin, I look forward to the day I might hear someone calls the police on you for the same thing. Why your time is much more important than the lives of those around you is beyond me. What a sense of entitlement you have.

I have a pilots license. Flying is a “divided attention task” involving flying the airplane, navigating, and communicating. The individual tasks are easy- the hard part of training is learning to appropriately divide “mindshare” among the tasks to suit the situation. (In an emergency ATC asks a few basic questions then shuts up…even during routine takeoffs and landings cockpit conversations are strictly limited). If drivers could be put in a driving simulator most would be shocked at how poorly they react and drive when holding a conversation. I think most people can spot distracted drivers but of course none of us think *we* drive that badly when we’re distracted!

Solution is simple- make the penalties for accidents caused by talking or texting the same as driving under the influence of any other “intoxicant”.

In life there will be opposing arguments on every controversial topic. What I have learned is that on one side logical arguments will be presented and on the other, pardon me, mere nonsense. The use of cellphones while driving – with headset, handset, handheld – is no different. What is it going to take for everyone to realize that any source of distaction while driving is dangerous?

Once the key is turned in the ignition, each of us should resolve to eschew any behaviour that is going to distract us from the business of piloting the vehicle safely. If a call must be made, if children are out of control or the driver gets hungry, pull off the road, stop the vehicle and attend to business. That’s it!

Despite the cellphone ban in my neck of the woods, I have seen people holding the phone with one hand, holding a coffee cup with the other and using the knees and thighs to steer the car. I have seen people texting, reading the newspaper, putting on makeup while exceeding the speed limit. All I can do is shake my head and wonder at this level of irresponsibility.

The talking and texting are dangerous but the nature of the conversations and messages makes them even more so. The phones are being used to conduct business, including participating in conference calls and negotiating the terms of contracts. Where is the driver’s attention at such times?

Some people will never see that a moving vehicle is tantamount to being in control of a dangerous weapon and even more so if operated while the driver is distracted. My daughter-in-law’s grandmother was killed in September and her daughter who was driving the car was seriously injured. The accident occurred just one week before her wedding to my son. The offending driver, who was uninjured, was texting while driivng at a high rate of speed. His car crossed the highway median and rammed their car. Could this accident have been avoided?

Are we losing the ability to reason for ourselves? Are we becoming slaves to technology? Are we so afraid to be alone with our own thoughts that we must have someone on the other end of a line at all times?

As Joe, I believe, pointed out above, we survived for 116 years without phones in our cars. Someone whom I know very well and who used to be attached to his cell every waking minute, has now dispensed witht he phone and has replaced it with a pager and a PDA. He confessed to being much happier.