Would you be willing to put away your cell phone and not use it at all while driving — with or without an ear piece? Well soon, that could be the law of the land.
The National Transportation Safety Board believes that cell phone use while driving is out of control. In fact, they say that portable electronic devices have become so distracting, they are pushing for the 50 states and the District of Columbia to ban all non-emergency use of all PED’s (a GPS or some other device designed to support the driving task would be the only exception).
Most states already ban holding a cell phone, texting, or talking without an ear piece while driving, but now the NTSB says that is simply not enough. “According to NHTSA, more than 3,000 people lost their lives last year in distraction-related accidents”, said NTSB Chairperson Deborah A.P. Hersman. “It is time for all of us to stand up for safety by turning off electronic devices when driving. No call, no text, no update, is worth a human life.”
Critics say there are a myriad of distractions inside a car that are potentially more dangerous than a cell phone. Handling young children, eating, talking with a passenger, changing a radio station, or applying make-up are all frequent activities of today’s driver and could easily cause distractions. But the NTSB is undeterred, saying our addiction to constant connection has put cell phone chatting, high-powered business deals and Facebook and Twitter updates unnecessarily behind the wheel of a car. They want the concept of driving to be less about iPods, movie screen’s and cell phones, and more about safety.
SHOULD CELL PHONE USE BE BANNED WHILE DRIVING?
Like millions of Americans I own a cell-phone. However, unlike millions of Americans, I seldom use it and I've NEVER even thought about using it while driving. It just seemed much too dangerous. The truth is, I wonder what took the NTSB so long in issuing this no-brainer.Any steps aimed at saving lives, I'm all for it.