As long as there have been cars, drivers have been distracted in cars. Driver awareness—or lack thereof—is a major safety concern. Each year, more than 42,000 people are killed and more than 3 million are injured in more than 6 million motor vehicle crashes on the nation's roads. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that driver distraction is a contributing cause of 20 percent to 30 percent of all motor vehicle crashes—or 1.2 million accidents. One researcher has estimated that driver inattention may cause as many as 10,000 deaths each year and approximately $40 billion in damages. Although driver inattention has always been a traffic safety concern, state lawmaker interest in distracted driving has increased dramatically in recent years. Since 1999, every state has considered legislation related to driver distraction. In 2004, legislatures in 33 states considered bills, and legislators in at least 39 states had proposed driver distraction legislation as of June 2005. A virtually limitless number of events, activities and objects, both inside and outside the motor vehicle, have the potential to divert a driver from his or her main task—the safe operation of the vehicle. Distraction can come from kids and pets in the back seat, the radio, a billboard or a cup of coffee. It could come from a newspaper, a lawn decoration, a person walking along the road or from a driver's own abstract thoughts. Although opinions differ over which distractions cause the most crashes, most experts agree that, during the last decade, the rapid growth of new wireless technologies in the driving environment—most notably cell phones—is most responsible for the resurgence in driver distraction legislation. According to the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA), from 1995 to 2005, the overall number of wireless phone subscribers in the United States increased by more than 600 percent. More than 190 million people now use wireless services, compared to less than 30 million 10 years ago. The vast majority of wireless phone subscribers use hand-held phones that are highly portable and can be taken in and out of a vehicle. Such phones often are used for an extended duration and are easy to spot in the hands of other motorists. Anyone who has been in a car lately knows that it is common to see another driver maneuvering through traffic with one hand pressed against his or her ear. Other potential distractions—such as eating and drinking, personal grooming, or using a radio or CD player—often are not as easy to spot and can occur over a much shorter time period, making them less likely to draw the ire of other motorists, including state legislators and their constituents. Advances in cell phone complexity also have made them a target for potential regulation. Phones are much more sophisticated than they were a decade ago. Modern mobile phones can take, send and receive pictures. They allow users to surf the Web, check stock quotes and sports scores, play video games and perform a variety of additional functions beyond conversation. Although cell phones clearly are at the forefront of the driver distraction debate, they are not the only in-vehicle technology or potentially distracting activity that is attracting interest from legislators. Other wireless communications and entertainment devices in vehicles—such as navigation systems, televisions, DVD players and computers—are becoming more common. Such devices—often referred to as telematics—form part of a multi-billion dollar industry that has made it possible for drivers and passengers to do almost anything in their car that they can do in their home or office. In 2004 and 2005, state legislators proposed bills related to driver distraction that included measures to restrict the use and placement of televisions and DVD players in vehicles; prohibitions on personal grooming, reading and writing, restrictions on interaction with unsecured pets and cargo; and prohibitions on the types of videos that can be displayed in the car. Growing congestion and longer commutes give many drivers greater incentive to use their phones and other wireless technologies to make the extra time spent in their cars more productive. According to the Texas Transportation Institute, drivers in the United States spend approximately 3.7 billion hours in traffic delays each year. Although estimates of the percentage of wireless subscribers who use their phones while driving vary from 50 percent to as high as 70 percent, the number of drivers who use their cell phones appears to be growing. In 2005, NHTSA's National Center for Statistics and Analysis, which provides the only probability-based observed data on driver cell phone use in the United States, published the results of an annual study on observed driver cell phone use. The study found that, during a typical daylight moment in 2004, approximately 8 percent of drivers were using wireless phones in some manner, double the number estimated in 2000. The survey also found that cell phone use increased from 2000 to 2004 among most categories, including both male and female drivers, and among almost every age and racial group. It grew for drivers in all weather conditions, among drivers of all different categories of vehicles, and in three out of four geographic regions. Driver use of cell phones also increased from 2000 to 2004 in urban, suburban and rural areas, during weekday rush hours; and on weekends. No estimates were made regarding the number of drivers who use navigation systems, TVs and other telematic devices. Although it is clear that both the use and complexity of technology in the car have increased, the effects of this technology are in dispute. There is little consensus about whether cell phones and other wireless devices that are available in motor vehicles pose a significant enough threat to public safety to justify legislative restrictions. Proponents of restrictions, such as the Partnership for Safe Driving, have argued that the unique distraction caused by the use of phones and other in-vehicle communication devices takes a driver's attention away from the road more dangerously than do other activities. Unlike CD players or activities such as eating or drinking, communications technologies require a driver to cognitively interact with the device, often for long periods of time. According to those who support restrictions, this use of cognitive functions can diminish the ability to focus on the task of driving. Conversely, restriction opponents such as CTIA often cite the value of wireless phones and other devices as a reason against singling them out for regulation. Unlike other traffic safety issues such as drunk driving or seat belts, where few compelling reasons exist to allow a driver to operate a vehicle drunk or without a seatbelt, there are reasons to allow phones in the car. Wireless phones can be valuable tools. Phones help drivers make time spent in the car more productive, allow a driver to stay in touch with family, or help change dinner plans. Phones also can be used to promote on-the-road safety programs such as the Amber Alert system or provide assistance in an emergency. According to CTIA, more than 200,000 emergency calls are placed on wireless phones every day. Opponents also argue that there is little evidence that wireless phones are more distracting than other activities in the car. Any event, item or activity inside or outside a vehicle has the potential to distract a driver. One study ranked mobile phones as low as eighth among distractions that cause crashes. (Author/publisher)
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