Transportation department presents plan to stop distracted driving
A comprehensive plan of action designed to reduce the dangers caused by drivers operating motor vehicles while distracted by handheld electronic communication devices, was announced recently in a statement by the United States Department of Transportation. The plan, designated as the “Blueprint for Ending Distracted Driving” outlines a proposed cooperative effort on the part of national, state, and local law enforcement agencies, legislators, safety advocacy organizations, and drivers themselves, to prevent the widespread dangerous practice of text messaging or talking on a mobile phone while operating a moving automobile. The plan calls on the remaining 11 states that have not passed laws against driving while distracted by an electronic device to join the other 39 states and the District of Columbia that have already enacted some form of law prohibiting the practice and requests that automakers develop future vehicles with an intent to reduce the number of distractions available to the driver while the vehicle is being operated. The blueprint also suggests that schools integrate educational programs warning of the dangers caused by distracted drivers into their curricula because National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data indicates that motorists age 25 and younger are twice or three times more likely to engage in electronic text based messaging while behind the wheel than drivers in any other age group. The plan also provides $2.4 million in funding to California and Delaware to aid in the implementation of a pilot public awareness advertisement campaign entitled “Phone in One Hand, Ticket in the Other.”
