Concerns of texing while driving escalate
When top tier tech blogs start raising alarms about highway safety, you certainly have a problem on your hands. It’s hard to say how much of recent alarm is hyperbole and how much is fact. There have been a lot of opinion articles lately that consider texting while driving more dangerous than drunk driving. Almost as dangerous is certainly not hyperbole. Mostly the hyperbole comes behind statements like “much more dangerous than drunk driving”. In terms of reaction time during the specific act, that can absolutely be true, but an otherwise lucid, sober driver will have normal reaction times once the act of texting ceases, so in our opinion, it’s apples and oranges
It just doesn’t pass the smell test that someone with a BAC of .15 is less dangerous than an otherwise lucid driver texting on a cell phone for seconds or even a couple minutes during an entire trip. People who drink and drive with knowledge and forethought who cause a fatal accident more and more are being tried with murder charges, our article about the recent 60 Minutes piece on the matter is clear evidence of this important emerging trend. We believe that any statements that so much as sound as if they are making the blood on our highways more acceptable through such hyperbole is irresponsible.
Singling out texting ignors other emerging distractions such as using Twitter on a cell phone. The cell phone should be treated as a distraction no matter what the person does that draws their attention from the road ahead.
ZDNet published this article which extols the dangers based on studies. We always need to study why people are dying long before we actually lift a finger to attempt to do something about it. That isn’t fully true as some states already have cell phone laws on the books.
14 states and the District of Columbia currently have cell phone laws on the books.
One of the big problems with enforcing a texting while driving law is it becomes a he said she said court case. Without empirical evidence that a person was texting behind the wheel, any seasoned attorney can get the case thrown out. Drunk drivers have cases dismissed all the time by virtue of refusing a blood alcohol test. Even with dash board camera evidence of the sobriety tests, a good attorney can raise enough doubt with juries. How then do we actually enforce such a law? Even if we learn how, it will always be a case of the poor made poorer for lack of adequate legal counsel, while the well off will continue to skate, as often is the case with drunk driving.
Do we need to do something? Absolutely! One person seriously injured, one person dead behind this emerging trend is one too many. Ultimately, technology will be will be the solution, the question is what does that technology look like? For sure, as stated in our article about Mercedes Benz new drowsy driver alert system would be a logical solution. That takes time though. What we recommend is that the Senate and House enact legislation that all new cars sold in the US will have that technology as a requirement. There is no doubt that a technology such as this will save many lives. Speaking as one who was nearly killed because someone fell asleep at the wheel, it makes sense to me.
Since the nature of the problem begins with a highly evolved technology that cell phones have become, perhaps some technology can be developed that actually prevents texting by drivers. Regardless, as our technology evolves, lets hope we can find ways to deal with this problem
In the mean time, certainly more needs to be done. Time and time again through the nations more serious stance against drunk driving and seatbelt usage, two components are proven to work: enforcement and education. We as a nation must enter into a season where education on texting while driving, and monitor closely the outcomes of acquittals vs. adjudication vs. guilty verdicts in states that have such laws, and let the experts craft more enforceable laws.
Current laws on the books are not without effect; see the Washington Post’s article on enforcement and outcomes in DC.
The ZDNet article referenced above points to three studies on the matter:
- Drivers who text are 23 times more likely to have a collision, based on a Virginia University study
- New revelation that in 2002–2003, the U.S. transportation agency recommended a total ban of cell phones while driving (except in an emergency); the report concluded little difference between the safety of hand-held and hands-free usage of cell phones in its study
- A Car and Driver study showed that texting-and-driving is far more dangerous than drinking-and-driving
These studies and reports demonstrate the urgent need to deal with this problem. Nationwide, highway deaths and trauma injury are in decline. We as a nation must be vigilant in seeing problems such as this don’t hamstring that decline.
