In 2010 Illinois, along with 18 other states, finally put into effect a law banning texting while driving. Some states ban handheld cell phone use or ban cell phone altogether. A comprehensive list (up-to-date for 2010) of the cell phone driving laws helps to sort through the laws.
If you’re driving, though, limiting ALL distractions is just safe practice, isn’t it?
Yet Intel and Google are helping distract drivers even more with new dashboard screens designed to surf the net, watch videos and view 3-D maps – all from the comfort and convenience (and distracting position) of the driver’s seat! Read the NY Times article – Driven to Distraction – for the full story.
I rather enjoy my bike commute and feel no need for distraction from the task at hand. Too bad motorists don’t feel the same way. My question is: How much more distracted can drivers get?
Popularity: 12% [?]
Being on a bicycle (or motorcycle), we are exposed to the elements and are completely vulnerable. If motorists felt as vulnerable, I suspect they would be a whole lot less likely to engage in eating, texting, etc. while behind the wheel.
Maybe we need automakers to produce new “retro” lines which replicate this:
http://www.cottontown.org/Nimoi/sites/CT/resources/jb05442.jpg
Just a small note, generally these types of devices require that the parking brake be engaged before viewing any sort of moving image. Sure, people can hack their vehicles and ground out that wire, but as a former car audio specialist, any company installing these types of devices are required to incorporate the parking brake as a “safety switch”. Great article though, definitely want to have drivers be aware of us, riding around downtown Chicago gets cramped as it is without having these extra distractions.
@Ox – Good point. The vulnerability issue is key. Too many drivers feel invincible surrounded by all that metal. Yet, stats report 34,017 fatal car accidents in 2008!
Great post, great points. It makes me nervous to be on the road, in a car or a bike, knowing the motorist beside me might be watching TV or blogging. Maybe if we reminded people that they could indulge in these types of distractions without danger while using public transport, buses and trains might suddenly become more popular!
Enforcement and severe penalties are the keys. If a slap on wrist by way of a $100 “moving violation” fine is all a motorist gets for the dangerous behavior of texting while driving, we’ll see more bicyclists, pedestrians and other motorists killed by these dummies.
If, however, everybody sees these numskulls getting serious jail time and fines for the crime of “reckless endangerment” then we have a chance at greater safety on the highways for everybody.
As a corollary, any motorist who runs a bicyclist off the road should be charged with “assault with a deadly weapon.” And if the bike rider dies, it should be second degree murder.
Enforcement IS necessary. However, in the case of tech companies invading the dashboard, the key is to prohibit such placement of distracting technology before it even happens! This “innovation” obviously distracts from the task of safely operating a motor vehicle, so why should it ever make its way into the car?
Studies at the University of Utah have shown that people driving while on cell phones or texting are worse than when they are intoxicated, but if car makers were putting mini-bars in the console with the reminder “Remember not to drink while driving” there would be an uprising of protest.
So insane that anyone thinks this is a wise idea. And Ford saying that they want to make the driving experience more engaging? How about drivers engage themselves in not running me over? That would be nice.
@Bluescat Supposedly if one knocks down a police officer with one’s motor vehicle, it’s an assault with a deadly weapon. This happened to someone I knew who through his stupidity had it added to a DUI charge. So, it *should* apply to knocking anyone down with a motor vehicle, really.
How is it some motorists get away with hitting cyclists, anyway… >:(
Isn’t the answer obvious? Ride where even a distracted driver will understand the proper action to avoid a collision. I find it works quite well even if they don’t all appreciate me making things simple. If you aren’t sure, take a LAB Traffic 101 course.
Oh my gosh, yet more gaudy bling for your vehicle! When will it end?
When Peak Oil hits, those cagers won’t be able to afford to drive their mobile entertainment gas-suckers, much less use all that unnecessary technology. Then the bicyclists will rule the roads! Bwahahaha!
Hey, I’m all for having internet access in cars, as long as they install it in the back seat.
Well, maybe all these cars will eventually get hacked with viruses, keeping them off the road…
None of these laws have anything to do with safety, they’re about control. Airbags, seatbelts, alcohol, what about drivers motoring about with dogs on their laps, eating hamburgers, fooling with the radio, lighting cigarettes, not having slept in a couple of days? Don’t those things contribute to death and dismemberment on the highway?
@tom – you make a valid point about those distractions that motorists create – eating, not getting enough sleep, playing with the radio; in fact I was rear-ended a few years ago in my car by a woman driving a brand new car who felt her radio was more intriguing than paying attention in the stop-and-go traffic she was navigating. Gr!
However, these laws for no cell phones or texting (and hopefully no screens in the dashboard) hope to limit the distractions available to already distracted motorists.
Amen! I’ve offended my sister before by pointing out that she may not be the most attentive driver with the rolling entertainment system that is her minivan. She’s got DVD player for the kids—which she is constantly trying to attend to because the kids are locked in their car seats. Her radio and CDs. She loves to grab the phone when driving and gab away with whoever will pick up because she spends so much time in traffic and is bored. Then there is the distraction that comes from kids alone—fights, constant questions, things being tossed.
Here in Missouri they passed a law that bans texting and driving for those under 21….so apparently those over 21 can do it safely?!
Yeah, all those new “safety” products in cars are basically lap tops for drivers. Total bullcrap – I can’t believe it’s allowed.
It’s a real problem. THe blackberry culture creates a state of almost anxiety, with people always waiting for the next text. So many deaths must be caused by lack of attention.
I am a person that doesn’t believe in making a lot of law that restrict our freedoms. I was not a big fan of the helmet law for motorcycles, or the seat belt laws. Don’t get me wrong you need to wear seat belts driving the car and a helmet while riding motorcycles. I just thought it would be a no brainer to wear the items that would protect you when you’re driving. Now that texting and talking on the phone is common while people drive the roadways, I have to say it but there needs to be a law in our state (Iowa) to make it illegal. It is sad to think that some people do not get that distracted driving is a bad thing that not only affects them but other around them. At least if and when this law passes it will be a law that not only saves the driver, but also saves the pedestrians and cyclist alike.
@Jeff – I’ve heard that the parking brake must be engaged, but then what if they put the car in park while at a long stop light and then suddenly must get into drive? They may veer into a cyclist/pedestrian (or another car) just in a frenzy to move again. You’re right – we need the drivers more aware of us and not what’s happening in cyberspace.
It’s unbelievable what car makers will put into an SUV. As both a driver and a cyclist, I hate it when I see an SUV with not just one but five video screens playing. Four were on the back sides of the seats and one in the very middle. Granted I couldn’t see the placement of the center display but does a TV really need to be playing while you’re diring?
Heck, I am alarmed by navigation systems and GPS devices installed in the dashboard…adding web-browsing capability seems like a reallly.bad.idea. Surely the safeguards to prevent use while driving can be easily defeated, too.
It’s like the old saying goes: “just because you CAN, doesn’t mean you SHOULD.”
Just posted on Chicago’s Active Transportation site: http://www.activetrans.org/blog/mkohara/focusdriven
Check out Focus Driven and join the effort against distracted driving.