The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recommended that all states implement laws prohibiting texting or talking while behind the wheel. This is in reaction to a growing body of evidence that our culture may be driven to distraction.
On December 14th Bloomberg Businessweek posted an Associated Press (AP) article by Shaya Tayefe Mohajer, summarizing the compelling case in favor of banning “texting, emailing or chatting while driving”. The article, “US urges ban on texting, talking while driving”, looks beneath the surface of the NTSB’s bold recommendation.
Traffic Safety — Essential for Realtors®
The topic is especially relevant for REALTORS® because many spend a great deal of time in their vehicles doing business as a Plano, TX a REALTOR® clearly demonstrates in a brief news video.
Why the Recommendation?
Mohajer reports that “The immediate impetus for the NTSB’s recommendation was last year’s deadly pileup near Gray Summit, Mo., involving a 19-year-old pickup driver.” Two teens were killed, while 38 others were injured.
The AP article recaps cases such as the Chatsworth, CA train collision which involved a texting engineer—25 were killed. Near Philadelphia there was a fatal tugboat accident in which a tugboat pilot was talking on the phone and using a computer. The overview also calls to memory the Northwest Airlines flight in which two pilots overshot their destination by over 100 miles as both pilots engaged with their laptops.
Year to Date State Practices
To date “35 states and the District of Columbia ban texting while driving, while nine states and Washington, DC, ban hand-held cell phone use,” Mohajer summarized.
A recent NTSB survey of 6,000 drivers indicates a 50 percent increase in the number of people who e-communicate while driving as compared to earlier survey results.
Could it be Enforced?
The controversy raises the question of enforcement. Miami technology salesman, Cully Waggoner, suggested that such laws would likely be routinely violated unless, “phone manufacturers can be required to equip phones with a technology that disables texting and data packages if the phone is moving over a certain speed.” At least one luxury car manufacturer has already done so.
An Irving, Texas company, WebSafety has developed an app which will block e-communicating while a phone is moving beyond a certain speed. The target market is parents of teenagers, however statistics indicate that parents actually text more frequently than teens says WebSafety’s COO Travis Bond.
Should States Ban Usage?
The NTSB recommendation prompts a debate. Have Americans developed an obsession with the continuous communication? Is there a need to establish boundaries? Is the NTSB over-reacting to the data?