Texting while driving

Texting while driving leads to increased distraction

Texting while driving is the act of composing, sending, or reading text messages, email, or making other similar use of the internet on a mobile device, while operating a motor vehicle, such as an automobile, truck or train. The practice has been viewed by many people and authorities as dangerous. It has also been ruled as the cause of some motor vehicle accidents, and in some places has been outlawed or restricted. Texting while driving leads to increased distraction behind the wheel. In 2006, Liberty Mutual Insurance Group conducted a survey with more than 900 teens from over 26 high schools nationwide. The results showed that 37% of students found texting to be "very" or "extremely" distracting. A study by the AAA discovered that 46% of teens admitted to being distracted behind the wheel due to texting.

A 2009 experiment with Car and Driver magazine editor Eddie Alterman that took place at a deserted air strip showed that texting while driving had a greater impact on safety than driving drunk. While legally drunk, Alterman's stopping distance from 70 mph increased by 4 feet; by contrast, reading an e-mail added 36 feet, and sending a text added 70 feet. While celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey have campaigned against texting while driving, there are reports that the message hasn't been getting through to teenagers.

In the UK in 2009 Gwent Police worked with film maker Peter Watkins-Hughes and production company Zipline Creative to create the graphic short film "Cow", as part of a campaign to stop texting while driving. The film earned honors in the Advertising Age's weekly Creativity Top 5 videos and became an overnight worldwide internet hit after being shown on the American news program The Today Show.

Research

The scientific literature on the dangers of driving while sending a text message from a mobile phone, or driving while texting, is limited. A Amanda, and Kailey. Kailey is a loser and has no friends, same with sarah. a detrimental effect on a number of safety-critical driving measures. Specifically, negative effects were seen in detecting and responding correctly to road signs, detecting hazards, time spent with eyes off the road, and (only for sending text messages) lateral position. Mean speed, speed variability, lateral position when receiving text messages, and following distance showed no difference. A separate, yet unreleased simulation study at the University of Utah found a sixfold increase in distraction-related accidents when texting.

The low number of scientific studies may be indicative of a general assumption that if talking on a mobile phone increases risk, then texting also increases risk, and probably more so. 89% of U.S. adults think that text messaging while driving is "distracting, dangerous and should be outlawed." The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has released polling data that show that 87% of people consider texting and e-mailing while driving a "very serious" safety threat, almost equivalent to the 90% of those polled who consider drunk driving a threat. Despite the acknowledgement of the dangers of texting behind the wheel, about half of drivers 16 to 24 say they have texted while driving, compared with 22 percent of drivers 35 to 44. Texting while driving received greater attention in the late 2000s, corresponding to a rise in the number of text messages being sent. The 2008 Will Smith movie Seven Pounds deals with Smith's character committing suicide in order to donate his organs to help save the lives of seven people to make up for the seven people he killed in a car accident because he was receiving a text message while he was driving. Texting while driving attracted interest in the media after several highly publicized car crashes were caused by texting drivers, including a May 2009 incident involving a Boston trolley car driver who crashed while texting his girlfriend. Texting was blamed in the 2008 Chatsworth train collision which killed 25 passengers. Investigations revealed that the engineer of that train had sent 45 text messages while operating. Despite these incidents, texting was still on the rise. A July 2010 Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll found 25% of New Jersey voters admitted to sending a text while driving, which was an increase from 15% in 2008. This increase could be attributed to drivers over the age of 30 sending text messages. Over 35% of New Jersey drivers aged 30 to 45 and 17% of drivers over 45 admitted to sending a text message while driving in the last year, an increase of 5-10% from 2008. Several studies have attempted to compare the dangers of texting while driving with driving under the influence. One such study was conducted by Car and Driver magazine in June 2009.. The study, carried out at the Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport in Oscoda, Michigan, used two drivers in real cars and messured reaction-times to the onset of light on the windshield. The study compared the reaction times and distances of the subjects while reading a text message, replying to the text message, and impaired. The study showed that at 35 mph, reading a text message decreased the reaction time the most, 0.12 and 0.87 seconds. Impaired driving at the same speed resulted in an increase of 0.01 and 0.07 seconds. In terms of stopping distances these times were estimated to mean:

• Unimpaired: .54 seconds to brake
• Legally drunk: add 4 feet
• Reading e-mail: add 36 feet.
• Sending a text: add 70 feet

On Sept. 29, 2010, the insurance industry’s Highway Loss Data Institute released research purporting to show that texting-while-driving bans in four states failed to reduce crashes and may instead have contributed to an increase in road accidents. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood called the study “completely misleading.”

Virginia Tech Transportation Institute Study

On July 27, 2009, the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute released preliminary findings of their study of driver distraction in commercial vehicles. Several naturalistic driving studies, of long-haul trucks as well as lighter vehicles driving six million combined miles, used video cameras to observe the drivers and road. Researchers observed 4,452 "safety-critical" events, which includes crashes, near crashes, safety-critical events, and lane deviations. 81% of the "safety-critical" events involved some type of driver distraction. Text messaging had the greatest relative risk, with drivers of heavy vehicles or trucks being more than 23 times more likely to experience a safety-critical event when texting. The study also found that drivers typically take their eyes off the forward roadway for an average of four out of six seconds when texting, and an average of 4.6 out of the six seconds surrounding safety-critical events. The study revealed that when traveling at 55 mph, a driver texting for 6 seconds is looking at the phone for 4.6 seconds of that time and travels the distance of a football field without their eyes on the road. Some of VTTI's conclusions from this study included that "texting should be banned in moving vehicles for all drivers", and that "all cell phone use should be banned for newly licensed teen drivers". The results of the study are listed in the table below.

Risk Increases of Cell Phone Tasks by Vehicle Type

Cell phone task	Risk of crash or near event crash
Light Vehicle Dialing	2.8 times as high as non‐distracted driving
Light Vehicle Talking/Listening	1.3 times as high as non‐distracted driving
Light Vehicle Reaching for object (i.e. electronic device...)	1.4 times as high as non‐distracted driving
Heavy Vehicles/Trucks Dialing	5.9 times as high as non‐distracted driving
Heavy Vehicles/Trucks Talking/Listening	1.0 times as high as non‐distracted driving
Heavy Vehicles/Trucks Use/Reach for electronic device	6.7 times as high as non‐distracted driving
Heavy Vehicles/Trucks Text messaging	23.2 times as high as non‐distracted driving

1. VTTI

Notable crashes

• On August 29, 2007, Danny Oates was killed by a young driver of a car, allegedly texting while driving. The defense had argued that driver Jeffrey Woods had possibly suffered a seizure during the time of the accident.

• On January 3, 2008, Heather Leigh Hurd was killed by a truck driver who allegedly was texting while driving. Her father Russell Hurd has been actively supporting a law in various U.S. states called Heather's Law that would prohibit texting while driving.

• The 2008 Chatsworth train collision, which killed 25 people, and which occurred on September 12, 2008, was blamed on the operator sending text messages while operating the train.

• In 2009, a crash on the MBTA Green Line of the Boston area was blamed on a driver who was texting. This occurred nearly a year after the Newton, Massachusetts rail accident, which occurred on May 28, 2008, and was blamed on the operator using a cell phone while operating the train.

• Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Frank Ryan's fatal crash on August 16, 2010 may have been the result of distracted driving due to texting.

Laws by location

A number of countries ban all cell phone use while driving (talking and texting).

Canada

All provinces except Alberta and New Brunswick have banned both talking on hand-held phones and texting while driving. The country's territories (Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Yukon) have also yet to enact bans.

United Kingdom

Any use of a mobile phone or similar device whilst driving, or supervising a learner driver, is illegal. This includes being stopped at traffic lights. The only exceptions are emergency calls to 999 or 112.

United States

Texting while driving statutes in the United States
Color key:

  Banned for all drivers

  Banned for new drivers

  No statute

Texting while driving has been outlawed or is soon to be outlawed for all drivers in the following states: Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont,Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. The state of Texas prohibits school bus drivers from texting while transporting a child under 17. The states of Delaware, Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Texas and West Virginia have laws restricting those who are underage and/or with learner's permits from texting while driving. A law enacted in 2010 by Kentucky has banned texting for all drivers, as well as cell phone usage by all drivers under 18. The latter feature is unusual in that holders of unrestricted licenses are subject to the ban; most states that have banned cell phone usage by young drivers apply their laws only to holders of restricted or graduated licenses.

In Florida, a proposed bill known as "Heather's Law" would ban all cell phone use while driving. The law was inspired by the death of Heather Hurd, who was killed in an accident allegedly caused by a truck driver who crashed into 10 cars when he was sending a text message behind the wheel.

On October 1, 2009, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced President Barack Obama's signing of an Executive Order directing federal employees not to engage in text messaging while driving government-owned vehicles, among other activities. According to Transportation Secretary Ray Lahood, “This order sends a very clear signal to the American public that distracted driving is dangerous and unacceptable. It shows that the federal government is leading by example." As a part of a larger move to combat distracted driving, the DOT and NHTSA launched the public information website distraction.gov.

On January 26, 2010, the US Department of Transportation announced a federal ban on texting while driving by truckers and bus drivers.

Existing laws

State	Effective	Restriction	Penalty	Other details	Source
Alabama	January 19 2010
Alaska	September 1, 2008	House Bill 8 prohibits drivers from using electronic devices with a visual display (e.g. televisions or computers) while driving. The law does not specify cell phones, though it can be interpreted this way, and is seen as a ban on texting and driving.	not specified	Violators guilty of misdemeanor. If death is caused by violation, violator is guilty of a felony.	details
Arizona
Arkansas	October 2009	All drivers, regardless of age or experience, prohibited from sending text messages while driving		Known as HB1013 or "Paul's Law." Exempts emergency service providers in the provision of services.
California	July 1, 2009	Prohibits sending electronic text messages while driving	$76 first offense $175 each subsequent offense
Colorado	December 1, 2009	Prohibits sending text messages, email, or tweets while driving	$50 first offense $100 second offense	Also prohibits drivers under 18 from talking on a cellphone while driving
Connecticut		All handheld cell phone use banned
Delaware		Legal except for drivers that have recently received their learner's permit. This also includes intermediate license holders. Banned for all drivers effective January 2, 2011.		Also prohibits drivers under 18 from talking on cell phones while driving
District of Columbia		All handheld cell phone use banned
Florida		Legal
Georgia	July 1, 2010	Prohibits writing, sending, or reading any text-based communication, including via internet; also prohibits drivers under 18 with provisional licenses from talking on cell phones while driving.	Up to $150
Hawaii		Illegal to use most electronic devices while operating a motor vehicle
Idaho		Legal
Illinois	Jan. 1, 2010	Illegal
Indiana	July 1, 2009	Drivers under 18 prohibited from texting and driving
Iowa	July 1, 2010	Prohibits reading, writing, and sending text messages.
Kansas
Kentucky	July 15, 2010	House Bill 415 prohibits the following: Reading, writing, and sending email or text messages by all drivers when the vehicle is in motion. All cell phone usage by drivers under 18, regardless of license type. Exceptions for emergencies, and for GPS use that does not involve data entry.	Warnings until January 1, 2011. After that date: $25 for first offense $50 for subsequent offenses For drivers under 18 on restricted licenses, mandatory 180-day waiting period from the time of offense before graduating to the next license level. This applies from the law's effective date.	Drivers 18 and over allowed to read, select, and enter phone numbers or names in order to make a call. All drivers allowed to use GPS features, and drivers 18 and over allowed to enter data for GPS purposes at all times.
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland	July 1, 2009	Prohibits writing or sending text messages while operating motor vehicle or while in the travel portion of the roadway.	Fine up to $500	Exception for use of GPS or emergency situations.
Massachusetts	July 6,2010	Prohibits drivers from sending a text or instant message, use of electronic mail, Internet access, using your phone for GPS navigation, and all of the above on electronic devices including phones, laptops, pagers, or other handheld devices	1st offense: $100, 2nd offense:$250, and 3rd offense: $500; If you are under 18, 1st offense: $100 fine in addition to a 60-day license suspension, and attend a mandatory "attitude" class. 2nd offense: $250 fine and a 180-day suspension. 3rd offense: $500 fine and a one year suspension.	GPS's are still allowed. Use of a phone is banned to all people under 18. Once 18, you can make hands free calls. Also, the bill requires anyone over 75 to get a driving test every 5 years and take a vision test.
Michigan	July 1, 2010	Reading, typing, or sending while vehicle is moving	$100 first offense $200 each subsequent offense	Exception for use of GPS or emergency situations.
Minnesota	August 1, 2008	Any form of text messaging while driving is illegal, and is considered a petty misdemeanor statewide.	Up to $300.	Also prohibits drivers under 18 from talking on a cellphone while driving; GPS and cell phone usage still allowed.
Mississippi
Missouri		Illegal for children, teens and adults younger than 21. Legal for citizens over the age of 21.
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire	Jan. 2010	Illegal
New Jersey	March 1, 2008	Using handheld or texting while driving is illegal, hands-free are not permitted for GDL holders	Between $100 and $250
New Mexico
New York	2009	Illegal
North Carolina	December 1, 2009	Illegal
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon	1/2010	House Bill 2377 prohibits all drivers from using a mobile communication device while operating a motor vehicle. A mobile communication device is defined as "a text messaging device or a wireless, two-way communication device designed to receive and transmit voice or text communication." House Bill 2872 prohibits drivers that are under 18 years of age from using any type of mobile communication device such as a cell-phone. This includes text-messaging and does not allow for hands-free operation of a cell-phone. This law applies if you are under 18 and driving with a provisional drivers license, a special student driver permit, or a instruction driver permit.	Minimum fine of $142.00	HB 2377 exempts use of hands-free devices by all drivers 18 and over; some drivers who use a mobile communications device while driving if the vehicle is necessary for the person’s job; and some drivers who use radios (CB-style) while in the scope of their employment.
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island	2009	Illegal
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee	July 1, 2009	All drivers prohibited from transmitting or reading a written message while vehicle is in motion	Up to $50 Plus court costs not to exceed $10	Also known as Senate Bill 393.
Texas	Sept. 1, 2009	Cell phone usage is prohibited in school zones	$50 for school zones where posted	Operators of passenger buses may not use a cell phone if minors are on board as well as drivers in the intermediate stage for the first 12 months are also banned. Austin TX, texting while driving is banned effective Jan 2010
Utah	May 2009	Illegal	First Offence: Class C misdemeanor Second Offence: Class B misdemeanor Automatic Class B misdemeanor if the person inflicted serious bodily injury upon another as a proximate result of using a handheld wireless communication device for text messaging or electronic mail communication while operating a moving motor vehicle
Vermont	June 1, 2010	All "portable electronic device" usage banned for drivers under 18 Texting from such devices banned for all drivers	FIRST OFFENSE: $100 fine + surcharge + 15% = $156 2 points on license Junior Operators (under 18) subject to 30 day recall (suspension) SECOND OFFENSE (within two years of First Offense) $250 fine + surcharge + 15% = $329 5 points on license Junior Operators (under 18) subject to 30 day recall (suspension)
Virginia	2009	Illegal
Washington	2010	Illegal	The fine for the offense is $124	text messaging or cell phone use without a hands free device is a primary offense
West Virginia
Wisconsin	December 1, 2010	Texting Banned While Driving for All Drivers. The law is primary, meaning police officers can stop motorists suspected of this offense alone.	FIRST OFFENSE: $20-$400 Fine 4 points on license SECOND OFFENSE $200-$800 Fine	Signed into Law: May 5, 2010	Wisconsin DOT
Wyoming	July 1, 2010	Sending message from any electronic device while driving declared illegal.	$75 for first offense.

Using technology to address the problem

A sign in West University Place, Texas advising drivers that they are not allowed to text

In 2009 it was reported that some companies, including iZUP, ZoomSafer, Aegis Mobility, and cellcontrol by obdEdge employ systems that place restrictions on cell phone usage based on the phone’s GPS signal, data from the car itself or from nearby cellphone towers.

The use of telematics to detect drunk driving and texting while driving has been proposed. A US patent application combining this technology with a usage based insurance product was open for public comment on peer to patent. The insurance product wouldn't ban texting while driving, but would charge drivers who text and drive a higher premium.

In 2010 AdelaVoice launched, StartTalking, the world's first smartphone application that lets motorists keep their eyes on the road and hands upon the wheel. StartTalking addresses the issue of distracted driving throughout the entire process of composing, sending and receiving text messages, removing the visual and physical distractions normally associated with text messaging. StartTalking is 100% eyes-free and hands-free way to interact with the mobile phone.

In addition to technological solutions to address the issue of texting while driving, drivers may consciously read and sign a pledge to never text while driving. After drivers read and sign the pledge, they remember their pledge each time they have an urge to text while driving. While there is not a fix all solution to this problem, each and every small initiative helps. The pledge can be found at I Will Not Text and Drive.

Criticism of bans

One argument against banning texting while driving is that it is safe and helpful under some circumstances. For example, a driver in a traffic jam might safely, and usefully, send a text message rescheduling his appointment. There are products like FleetSafer, MobileSafer and TeenSafer now available in Canada (www.itiinternational.com) that suppress the use of cell phone keyboards and screens hence no texting, emailing nor browsing. However, ZoomSafer safe driving products permit calls to be made and use of 911 using Bluetooth in-vehicle or other BT devices in a hands free manner reducing the associated risks of distracted driving. Using MobileSafer and VoiceMate also permits the sending of voice messages to other parties where the message is converted and verbally repeated upon receipt. Technology definitely contributes to safe, undistracted driving. Another argument can be made against the way the texting bans are written. Instead of banning the act of writing or reading that distracts a person from driving, such as reading a book, writing notes on a piece of paper or writing text using a keyboard of a phone, the laws mostly ban the act of sending text messages and do not say anything about how the messages were created. Using modern voice recognition technology text messages can be created eyes and hands free without ever engaging in the act of reading or writing.

See also

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• Distracted driving
• Mobile phones and driving safety
• Cell phone bans (on talking) by country
• Bans suggested to States at money.cnn.com

External links

• Cell phone and driving laws in the United States (including texting)
• Texting & Driving Infographic
• Texting While Driving Blog
• Distracted Driving Information
• Safe Texting Campaign