The
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), an independent federal agency charged with determining the probable cause of transportation accidents, promoting transportation safety, and assisting victims, has voted unanimously to recommend a ban on non-emergency use of portable electronic devices (aka cell phones) while driving. The decision followed on heels of the
discussion into the causes of an accident involving two school buses, a GMC pickup, and a Volvo tractor. The board concluded that the most likely cause of the accident, which killed two and injured many others, was probably inattentiveness on by the pickup driver who was text messaging at or near the time of the accident.
It's a big problem. According to the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "in 2009, more than 5,400 people were killed and an additional 448,000 were injured in crashes that were reported to involve driving while distracted. Among those killed or injured in these crashes, nearly 1,000 deaths and 24,000 injuries included cell phone use as the major distraction (
Distracted Driving in the United States and Europe) It's considered such a serious problem that the U.S. Department of Transportation has a website (
www.distraction.gov) devoted to the issue. The site includes fact sheets, summaries of state laws, and links to research reports.
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Chart from Distracted Driving in the
United States and Europe |
Take a look at this chart. Only about 1/3 of us "never" use a cell phone while driving. We sincerely hope that you are not reading this blog post while driving.
Drive safely
Only my opinion but I think Bluetooth is equally distracting as well, as is having a conversation while driving. I side swiped my car against a pole in a parking garage once because I was distracted talking to a passenger. Bluetooth use is still distracting mentally; people need to concentrate on driving and not their conversation.
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