The genesis of the driving distractions editorial
We don’t often editorialize about issues not well publicized in our paper, but I’ve always been nagged by the thought that talking on a cell phone while driving isn’t a great idea. So when I heard a story on National Public Radio about this, my ears perked up.
Rich and I usually decide the Saturday editorial on Wednesdays so I pitched him on this and he said we could probably make a link to the CalTrans worker who was killed while planting a tree beside the highway.
We didn’t have a story about driving distractions and cell phones from the Associated Press but you may want more on this topic. And there’s lots. We took our cue from NPR and NPR took it’s cue from a story from the New York Times.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration did an extensive study on the issue. According to NPR and the Times, the study was quashed by members of Congress who didn’t want the NTSHA lobbying state governments, but the study’s documents were made public after a Freedom of Information Act request by the non-profit Center for Auto Safety. Click here for a link to the documents.
A poll on NPR.org says
• 59 percent of people “often use a cell phone while driving”
• 26 percent “only in emergencies”
• 15 percent “never use one while behind the wheel.”
People often complain that Rich and I don’t sign the editorials. I supposed we might sometimes because the writing usually falls to one or the other of us. Nevertheless, we almost always work up the ideas together and read each other’s copy. And once in awhile, like on the driving distractions edit, it’s a true joint effort.
But getting back to this week’s editorial: Now I’ve editorialized against cell phone use and other cognitive distractions while driving. Does that mean I have to turn off the radio and stop listening to books on CD while I drive?
I had this weird thought while riding my bike and listening on a portable radio to the story in question: What if some guy using a cell phone swerves and hits me? What if I don’t see him coming in my rearview mirror because I’m listening to the radio? Which unsafe “cognitive distraction” is worse.
Let’s have a beer and discuss it. But not while driving … or riding a bike.
I still wonder what specifically causes cell phone-related accidents; the “dialing” or the “talking?” Just as texting while driving has become a hot-button issue (pun intended), what difference is there between that and trying to drive while pressing at least seven buttons or the multiple keystrokes necessary to look up a number in an address book and then effectuating the call? I can’t seem to find any empirical data regarding accidents caused by these pre-conversation activities.
Psychologically, is there any difference between talking (or arguing) with a passenger inside the car or during a cell phone conversation? Having a Bluetooth device for my phone, I really don’t “feel” that much different holding a conversation than I do with a live person sitting next to me.
So, what makes the most sense? Is the current law just another way for the state to invade the privacy of our automobiles (just one step away from them invading our homes) or is it simply one more way to separate us from our hard-earned money? I would think it’s a little of both.
Regardless, many of my near-miss accidents involve people doing none of the above – they are simply not paying attention to what is going on around them. Sadly, most of them are either very young (with limited driving experience) or very old (limited by what advanced age does to all of us). And how do we better manage these types of driving problems without trampling upon the right to pursue our own brand of happiness? It is an interesting conundrum.