It’s time to put down that cell phone and concentrate on the task at hand.
The annual Network ofEmployers for Traffic Safety (NETS) Drive Safely Work Week (DSWW) campaign is October 3-7, 20011. The campaign is designed to get employers to make road safety a company-wide initiative. This year’s slogan is “Getting there safely is everyone’s business.” The federal OccupationalSafety and Health Administration has also launched a Distracted Driving Initiative, synchronized with the Drive Safely Work Week. Later this month, the National Organizations for Youth Safety will host its 2011 Distracted Driving Summit in Washington, DC.
With all these events in close succession, this seems an appropriate time to consider the issue of distracted driving. Let’s take a minute or so this week to look at the facts. The statistics are chilling: The U.S. Department of Transportation reports that in 2009, nearly 5,500 people died in crashes involving a distracted driver.
“But I’m a safe driver!” you object. “None of this is relevant to me.” Well, congratulations on your safety record, but you are mistaken if you think distracted driving doesn’t touch your life. You may be a perfect driver, but we know that there are thousands of dangerous motorists on the road at all hours of the day, and you or your friends could easily become a victim of their irresponsible driving habits. Even if you escape that, the costs of injuries caused by distracted drivers is a factor in the high prices you pay for car insurance and for health care. The problem of distracted driving really is everyone’s business.
No one approach can solve the problem. It will take commitment on a variety of levels — government, business, community action, and individual determination — to make safety on the roads a top priority. We will look at collective action by government today, and examine the other approaches later this week.
Government action: restrict cell phones and texting
The American Automobile Association reports that although 92 percent of drivers surveyed would “agree that texting or emailing while driving is unacceptable and 80%support laws against reading, typing or sending text messages or emails while driving,” about a quarter of drivers reported texting or emailing while driving in the previous month. “This ‘do as I say, not as I do’ attitude is one of the greatest obstacles preventing us from improving safety on our roads,” the authors report.
In response to the crisis, governments in 34 states have banned all text messaging by drivers. Many other states have acted to limit some handheld cell phone use, but no state has banned all cell phones while driving.
You can take action here. Learn the laws that apply in your state, and lobby state officials to strengthen them. Although there are many ways other than mobile communications for drivers to be distracted, limiting text messaging and telephony is a great way to start.
The important fact to remember is that state-level laws can change driver habits. Enforcement of those laws shows all drivers this a serious issue. The U.S.
Department of Transportation says that pilot programs already are showing effectiveness, and this view is shared by the Governors Highway Safety Association. Federal leaders agree: “We’ve seen that drivers can and do change their behaviors,” said Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood at last year’s Distracted Driving Summit, drawing analogies to seat belt and drunk driving laws.
Strengthen student driver training
Every state issues rules for road safety as part of its drivers’ license program, and those rules become part of the curriculum for drivers education programs. Write to your governor and your state legislature to encourage a greater emphasis on the hazards of distracted driving in those programs. Instruction in the hazards caused by inattentive driving should be required before any first-time driver gains his or her license.
The Network of Employers for Traffic Safety has published a booklet, “The Novice Driver’s Road Map,” for parents to help their children develop safe driving habits. The book is also available to companies that want to reach out to employees and their communities, and also for sale to drivers’ training programs and schools. For information on ordering “The Novice Driver’s Road Map,” contact NETS at [email protected]
