The ban is effective immediately.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today banned texting by drivers of commercial vehicles such as large trucks and buses, effectively immediately.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that more then 6,000 deaths are caused each year by distracted driving and hundreds of thousands more people are seriously injured.
In spite of clear evidence that the problem is growing, and NHTSA’s role to promote highway safety, the government has been slow to regulate electronic devices that are becoming prevalent in all types of vehicles.
The National Safety Council has called for a complete ban of cell phone use by drivers of any moving vehicle. Research shows that talking on a cell phone is the equivalent of drunk driving.
The prohibition is the latest in a series of critics say are largely symbolic moves taken by the Department to combat distracted driving since the Secretary convened a national summit on the issue last September.
“We want the drivers of big rigs and buses and those who share the roads with them to be safe,” said Secretary LaHood. “This is an important safety step and we will be taking more to eliminate the threat of distracted driving.”
The action is the result of the Department’s interpretation of existing rules. Truck and bus drivers who text while driving commercial vehicles may be subject to civil or criminal penalties of up to $2,750.
“Our regulations will help prevent unsafe activity within the cab,” said Anne Ferro, Administrator for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). “We want to make it crystal clear to operators and their employers that texting while driving is the type of unsafe activity that these regulations are intended to prohibit.”
FMCSA research shows that drivers who send and receive text messages take their eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds out of every 6 seconds while texting. At 55 miles per hour, this means that the driver is traveling the length of a football field, including the end zones, without looking at the road.
Drivers who text while driving are more than 20 times more likely to get in an accident than non-distracted drivers, according to Ferro. Because of the safety risks associated with the use of electronic devices while driving, FMCSA is also working on additional regulatory measures that will be announced in the coming months.
During the September 2009 Distracted Driving Summit, the Secretary announced the Department’s plan to pursue this regulatory action, as well as rulemakings to reduce the risks posed by distracted driving. President Obama also signed an Executive Order directing federal employees not to engage in text messaging while driving government-owned vehicles or with government-owned equipment. Federal employees were required to comply with the ban starting on December 30, 2009.