distracted driving
Really, How Important is it to Talk While Driving?
This is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. This is a good time for all of us to stand back and think about our driving habits and make an honest assessment of whether we are really following our own advice and instincts when it comes to being a safe driver. Distracted driving is one of our nation’s foremost traffic safety problems today. The problem has its roots in the growth of cell phone use in recent years.
According to FocusDriven.org, in 1995 cell phone subscriptions covered only 11 percent of the U.S. population. In 2010, that number grew to a whopping 93 percent. This has led to a significant increase in cell phone use while driving. It has also caused an increase in distracted driving-related deaths. Statistics show that at any given time, 9 percent of drivers are talking on cell phones. This makes them four times as likely to become involved in a car accident.
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Texting Contributed to Oklahoma City SUV Crash
An evening high-speed car crash on March 11 resulted in multiple injuries and the near splitting in half of the high-speed driver’s car. According to NewsOK.com, a police report, released today, identifies text messaging as a possible contributing cause of the auto accident.
Investigators determined that the high-speed driver was travelling north at approximately 95 mph before he crashed on Rockwell Ave. south of Wilshire Boulevard. Eyewitness accounts described the car as having veered into southbound lanes and subsequently hit a sport utility vehicle. The high-speed driver was thrown from the car, which was wrecked. His teenage passenger and the occupants of the SUV were taken to hospitals with less serious injuries. The high-speed driver is currently in good condition at OU Medical Center where he remains hospitalized.
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Texting While Trucking Now Banned By U.S. DOT
A recent government ban on texting specific to drivers of large commercial trucks should help cut-down on the number of auto accidents in Oklahoma and throughout the United States involving inattentive truck drivers. Statistically speaking, the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute cited truck drivers as being 23 times more likely to be involved in a traffic accident than those drivers who pay full attention to the road. As it now stands, truck drivers can face fines of up to $2,750 for texting while driving, but instances of inattentive truck driving are still occurring across the country.
According to the United States Department of Transportation, distracted driving takes on three different forms: visual, manual, and cognitive. Visual distraction involves taking one’s eyes off the road, a task that the vast majority of people do while text messaging. Manual distraction involves removing one’s hands from the steering wheel – yet another action that characterizes motorists who choose to use their cell phone while operating a motor vehicles. Cognitive distraction involves not fully focusing on the task at hand. While driving a large commercial truck, much attention needs to be given to the road and the safe operation of the vehicle. Texting while driving certainly detracts from a truck driver’s ability to operate the vehicle with the utmost care.
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