U.S. traffic safety regulators have proposed voluntary measures to keep drivers from being distracted by in-car touchscreens.
In a study, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that the tasks associated with hand-held phones and other portable devices increased the risk of getting into a crash by three times.
Regulators fear in-car devices could lead to distracted driving as well.
The government's voluntary guidelines establish recommended criteria for electronic devices installed in vehicles at the time they are built.
The guidelines seek to limit the time a driver must take her eyes off the road to manipulate a device to two seconds at a time - and twelve seconds total to complete the task.
The voluntary guidelines also recommend turning off several operations while the vehicle is in motion:
Manual text entry for the purposes of text messaging and internet browsing;
Video-based entertainment and communications like video phoning or video conferencing;
Display of certain types of text, including text messages, web pages, social media content.
In a press release, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said:
"Distracted driving is a deadly epidemic that has devastating consequences on our nation's roadways," said Secretary LaHood. "These guidelines recognize that today's drivers appreciate technology, while providing automakers with a way to balance the innovation consumers want with the safety we all need. Combined with good laws, good enforcement and good education, these guidelines can save lives."
A spokeswoman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers told the Associated Press they're concerned regulations on in-car devices would encourage more use of mobile devices while driving.
Human brains do not perform two tasks at the same time. Instead, the brain handles tasks sequentially, switching between one task and another. Brains can juggle tasks very rapidly, which leads us to erroneously believe we are doing two tasks at the same time. In reality, the brain is switching attention between tasks – performing only one task at a time.
When you think about someone texting and driving, who comes to mind? A teenager? If you said yes, you're wrong.
A survey conducted by AT&T as a part of the "It Can Wait" campaign found that 98% of adults that they surveyed admitted that they texted while driving. In contrast, 48% of teenagers said they texted while driving.
The AT&T study also found that 60% of adults surveyed said that they didn't text while they were behind the wheel three years ago.
What's going on with drivers in America? Is it smartphones? Or are we becoming more reckless drivers?
Bonnie Raffaele speaks at a news conference announcing an education campaign for "Kelsey's Law". The law is named for Raffaele's daughter, who died in a 2010 car accident while using her cell phone.
A new state law takes effect tomorrow that bans teenage drivers from talking on a cell phone behind the wheel.
“Kelsey’s law” is named for an Upper Peninsula teen who died in a car accident while using her mobile phone in 2010.
Kelsey’s mother, Bonnie Raffaele, lobbied hard for the law.
“Kelsey’s law will undoubtedly save lives,” says Bonnie Raffaele, “We may not know the exact number that it will save, but we know that it will save lives.”
New drivers in Michigan will soon face restrictions on cell phone use while they’re behind the wheel.
Governor Rick Snyder signed “Kelsey’s Law” Tuesday.
It bans cell phone use by teen drivers who still have their probationary licenses unless they use a hands-free device or are reporting an emergency.
The law is named for 17-year-old Kelsey Raffaele. The 17-year-old Sault Sainte Marie girl died in a car crash two years ago while talking on her cell phone.
Her mother, Bonnie Raffaele, lobbied for the law and attended the signing ceremony.
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