Take a look at this YouTube video if you have the guts .. there are many accidents depicted:
Note the level of inattentiveness required to run right through a red light. I'm sure some are drunk, high, sleepy, have the sun in their eyes, etc. but I would wager that many are on their cell phones, talking or texting.
Let's think about these distractions for a few minutes.
I'm sure we can agree texting while driving should remain illegal and we should seek to find ways to mitigate this risk. The user is required to take their eyes off the road for long periods of time to read the text, think about a response, and then again look at the phone while they type a response. Would you read a book while driving? How about type on a laptop? Then don't text either.
How about talking on the phone? Holding a phone next to your head blocks your vision and reduces you to a one-armed driver. "But I have an automatic transmission!" some say ... I call bullshit on that, because driving requires two hands. Cars are designed to be operated with two hands. With manual transmissions the right hand is temporarily used to shift gears - the rest of the time it is there to operate the steering wheel while the other hand flicks the blinker stalk, manages the headlights and wipers and in case of an emergency maneuver is available to steer. It remains easy to argue for a ban on phone conversations, especially without hands-free units.
What about hands-free units? This is better, as it frees both hands, but it doesn't free the mind. Your brain is still listening and thinking about your conversation, not paying attention to traffic. Studies repeatedly show that talking on the phone distracts drivers to the point that their ability to operate a vehicle is degraded as if they were legally drunk. On long interstate trips or when sitting stuck in traffic this is OK, but what about when things get moving? What about when you're negotiating that tight hairpin turn in Wisconsin, drift into the other lane and take out a motorcyclist and his passenger? What about when you don't notice the stale yellow traffic light and can't stop in time to avoid the parent and child stepping into the crosswalk (did you see that in the video ... and the child's balloon drifting into the sky?). Or in Arizona, when the dump truck ran into a group of motorcyclists stopped at a red light killing six? How about on our icy winter roads, you're gabbing away, and don't notice the other knuckleheads sliding into your lane? It might not even be your fault - but your kids in the back seat are equally vulnerable, whether you run into another car, or they run into you. Ever watch traffic in your neighborhood fly down the streets, drivers talking to no-one, oblivious to your kids trying to cross the street to their best friends, or riding their new bicycles? What could be so important that they can't make the phone call before leaving their driveway, or waiting to return a call before they get home to the store or work? Hands-free technology is no excuse for distracted driving, and should also be outlawed.
The danger of inattentive driving is everywhere, and the consequences are great. The mobile revolution is putting us all at risk, and I propose that we support legislation to outlaw drivers from using cell phones, and give the police the ability to pull drivers over for doing so. I would even support increased insurance deductibles, or reporting these offenses to the insurance companies as an incentive to get people off the phone when behind the wheel.
This is not a partisan issue. This is not about "freedom" any more than a requirement to have brake lights on your car is an infringement on your "freedom". It is not about creating a police state any more than requiring you to use your headlights at night creates a police state. It is about public safety, with low costs and high benefits to everyone - especially to those of us who use the roads and are more vulnerable than most, i.e. motorcycles, bicyclists, pedestrians, etc.
So do me, a motorcyclist, a favor. Do it for the safety of my wife, also a motorcyclist. Do it for the safety of your kids as they learn to drive, or the well-being of your own kids as a motorcycling parent. Contact your senator and representatives ... Jim Walz, John Kline, Tim Kelly, Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar, whomever is your legislator. Give them something useful to do other than bickering along party lines.
Take note of the proposed legislation:
http://handsfreeinfo.com/minnesota-cell-phone-laws-legislation
And if you're a motorcyclist ... pay attention out there, because the other folks aren't.
No comments:
Post a Comment