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Aug 21, 2012

RULES, REGULATIONS & TECHNO DEVELOPMENTS * USA

* New Jersey - Rutgers Engineers Design Cell Phone App to Reduce Distracted Driving

(Credit by Radu Razvan: Rutgers engineers have developed an app that senses whether a driver is using a cell phone and takes steps to reduce distractions) 
Piscataway,NJ,USA -Rutgers -15 Aug 2012: -- Laws that limit cell phone use while driving don’t seem to be curbing accidents blamed on drivers who insist on talking or texting behind the wheel... This has some engineers and lawmakers wondering if technology can do what threats of fines or jail time are not. Could cell phones automatically become less distracting while their owners are driving?... Rutgers engineers believe they can. They and colleagues at Stevens Institute of Technology have designed and tested a smart phone application that pinpoints where a cell phone user is sitting: on the driver’s side or the passenger’s side... If the latter, the app lets the passenger use the phone with no restrictions... If the former, the app takes several actions that reduce distractions to the driver. For example, it can silently forward incoming calls and texts to message boxes for later retrieval. It could also respond automatically to a caller or texter, saying that the owner is currently driving and will reply later. Or it could offer to put a voice call through if a caller or texter indicates the matter is urgent. For outgoing communication, the app could disable texting and make placing certain calls less difficult, perhaps by offering a short list of frequent contacts shown as large on-screen buttons...


* DC - 'Black box' standards coming for cars 
Washington,DC,USA -The Hills, by Pete Kasperowicz -14 Aug 2012: -- New federal standards for "black boxes" that record information leading up to auto accidents will will take effect Sept. 1, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) ruled on Tuesday... The decision means the new standards for the devices will not be delayed by one year, as automakers had requested... The federal standards will apply only to cars that are voluntarily outfitted with event data recorders (EDRs), also known as black boxes. But while the government does not yet require all cars to have black boxes installed, NHTSA is still thought to be considering a federal mandate as a next step, possibly this year... NHTSA standards for black boxes were proposed in 2006, but have been delayed since then. In 2009, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers suggested a delay to Sept. 1, 2013, arguing that this would give auto companies more time to work with original equipment manufacturers to ensure the standard can be met...

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Jan 12, 2012

Cell Phone Use * USA

* Alabama - Restricting drivers’, a tough pill to swallow?

Tuscaloosa,ALA,USA -CCJ Digital, by Aaron Huff -December 29, 2011: -- From January 3, 2012, commercial truck or bus drivers will face civil penalties of up to $2,750, per violation, for using handheld cell phones while operating a vehicle. The new rule, announced in November by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, will include a maximum penalty of $11,000 for companies that permit this behavior...  The real danger of using cell phones is not the risk of being caught. The accident risk is equal to driving while legally intoxicated, according to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine...  To help mitigate this risk, fleets can use applications that automatically lock down mobile devices when they detect motion. The real challenge, however, may be restricting drivers from using personal phones while operating company vehicles...

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Nov 30, 2011

RULES and REGULATIONS * USA

* DC - DOT Sets Final Rule Banning Truck Drivers’ Use of Hand-Held Phones

Washington,DC,USA -Land Line Magazine -28 Nov 2011: -- The Department of Transportation announced a final rule that will ban interstate truck and bus drivers from using hand-held cellphones while operating their vehicles...  The rule, issued by Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, is the latest move by DOT Secretary Ray LaHood to end distracted driving...  The rule prohibits commercial drivers from using hand-held phones while driving a truck or bus, sets federal civil penalties of up to $2,750 for each offense and disqualifies drivers from operating a commercial motor vehicle after multiple offenses...  Commercial truck and bus companies that allow drivers to use hand-held cell phones while driving will face a penalty of up to $11,000. The rule will affect about four million commercial drivers, DOT said...


* California - EOBR device to add cell-phone use detection feature

Anaheim,CAL,USA -Penton Media/Fleet Owner, by Deborah Whistler -Nov 29, 2011: -- NavStar Technologies, has signed an agreement with Trinity Noble to add cell-phone usage detection while driving to its portfolio of electronic onboard recorder (EOBR) hardware and services... NavStar chairman & CEO N. Douglas Pritt said the recent ban on handheld cell phones by commercial drivers is a boon to the company’s EOBR product... NavStar Technologies produces products and services for tracking/monitoring and reporting on the location and condition of high value cargo and other assets... FMCSA added that its research shows that reaching for a hand-held cell phone while driving makes a commercial truck three times more likely to be involved in a crash, and dialing a hand-held cell phone while driving increases risk of a crash by six times...

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Sep 15, 2011

PHONE BAN * USA - NTSB recommends complete phone ban for CMV drivers

Washington,DC,USA -Land Line, by David Tanner -13 Sept 2011: -- The National Transportation Safety Board does not have rulemaking powers, but the agency is making recommendations to the FMCSA to ban the use of handheld and hands-free cellphones by commercial drivers while driving... NTSB officials issued the recommendation to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in response to probable cause findings from a high-profile crash that led to 11 deaths in March 2010. Investigators determined that a 45-year-old truck driver was distracted by a cellphone leading up to a crash with a passenger van on Interstate 65 near Munford, KY... Among the recommendations to various agencies on Tuesday, Sept. 13, is one to FMCSA and the governments of all 50 states and the District of Columbia to: “Prohibit the use of both handheld and hands-free cellular telephones by all commercial driver’s license holders while driving in commercial operations, except in emergencies” ... It is already illegal for a commercial vehicle operator to send text messages or emails while operating a truck, bus or train...

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May 20, 2011

Survey * USA - Half of Companies Do Not Enforce Employee Cell Phone Policies

32% of companies report on-the-job crashes due to cell phone related distractions

Reston,VA,USA –Zoom Safer -May 18, 2011: -- ZoomSafer today released a survey showing that 32% of companies have knowledge or evidence of on-the-job crashes that have occurred as a result of distractions stemming from employee use of cell phones while driving. The first annual survey polled 500 business managers in North America and was designed to gauge corporate attitudes and best practices pertaining to distracted driving... Overall findings indicate rapidly growing concern among corporate managers about distracted driving risks and liability. Results show that 62% of companies have adopted written policies prohibiting employees from using a mobile phone while driving for company business. The survey also reveals that while many companies have adopted written cell phone driving policies, only half (53%) make any attempt to enforce compliance. Among companies that do enforce compliance, the survey found that 61% rely on post-incident disciplinary measures, and only 2% currently utilize technology to proactively measure and manage employee compliance with cell phone use policies...  (Photo from farm4.static.flickr)

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Mar 19, 2011

CELL PHONES BAN * Canada & USA - All Canadian provinces now ban hand-held phones while driving

Each of Canada’s 10 provinces has enacted bans on the use of hand-held electronic devices while driving

Fredericton,New Brunswick,Canada -Land Line Magazine, by David Tanner -18 March 2011: -- New Brunswick will be the last province to begin enforcing a ban on the use of hand-held electronic devices while driving once enforcement begins April 1...  The ban applies to the handling or manipulation of hand-held cell phones, texting devices and portable entertainment devices while driving. It also prohibits the manual programming of GPS units while driving...  TVs, monitors, DVD players and computer screens will not be permitted in New Brunswick “within the visual range of the operator or driver of a motor vehicle,” according to information released by the New Brunswick Department of Public Safety. Violators will be subject to fines of $172.50 plus three penalty points on a driver’s license...


* USA - Technology solving cell-phone truck use dilemma


Washington,DC,USA -Fleet Owner, by Wendy Leavitt -Mar 18, 2011: -- Last December, Sec. of Transportation Ray LaHood, proposed banning interstate bus and truck drivers from using handheld cell phones while operating a vehicle. Meanwhile, the number of productivity apps that can be loaded onto cell phones just keeps mushrooming—leaving fleets to seriously wonder how viable an IT platform cell phones will be for trucking business solutions down the road...  However, it may not be time to hang up on cell phones in trucks. Thanks to some enterprising new solution providers, it may be possible to take advantage of the benefits of mobile communication devices without risking a fleet’s safety rating in the process...  The availability of various technologies to restrict and track in-vehicle use of mobile devices is likely to continue to expand right along with the growth in the functionality and use of mobile devices themselves...  Think about how the number of active and passive onboard safety systems has grown in an effort to make the business of hauling freight by truck safer and more efficient. Cell phone usage control and tracking systems are the data corollary—tools to make the task of sharing information safer for those moving goods and people down the highway...

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Feb 28, 2011

DEBATES * USA - Hand-Held Phone Use

* ATA Supports Proposed Ban on Hand-Held Phone Use by Drivers


Arlington,VA,USA -TruckingInfo -24 Feb 2011:  --  The American Trucking Associations announced its support of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's proposed prohibition on the use of hand-held mobile phones, though it urged the agency to allow the use of hands free devices, citing agency research demonstrating the net safety benefits of such devices...  ATA President and CEO Bill Graves said: "Recognizing the risks of hand held mobile phone use, it simply makes sense to prohibit their use by all motorists to make the highways safer for everyone" ...   ATA also objected to the proposed prohibition on reaching for a mobile phone while driving. Doing so, ATA argued, would prevent drivers from initiating hands-free calls which, as the agency's research demonstrates, can have a net safety benefit. Further, ATA claimed, it is inconsistent to permit drivers to reach for other objects (e.g., a C.B., a radio dial) but prohibit reaching for a cell phone...


* OOIDA: Comments support hands-free use of cell phones

Grain Valley,MO,USA -Land Line Magazine, by David Tanner -25 Feb 2911: -- Drivers and carriers submitting comments to the public docket want the FMCSA to leave responsible hands-free use of cellular phones alone. Many also believe that responsible hand-held use of phones while driving should be left alone because the entire trucking industry relies so much on wireless communication.
* Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association:
“Indeed, cell phone use is no more distracting than other types of communications and electronic equipment used regularly by truck drivers such as in-cab fleet management devices, global positioning and other navigation systems, and Citizens Band (CB) radios that have not received the same level of scrutiny by FMCSA” ...   OOIDA, association president Jim Johnston noted that driver distraction is seldom the cause of truck wrecks. Johnston indicated that that the safety record of professional drivers has improved significantly in recent years, and he cited a study done by the transportation institute at Virginia Tech that found that talking on a hand-held cell phone doesn't create any increased risk of an accident...

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Apr 9, 2010

Distracted Driving * USA - DOT Proposes to Ban Truckers, us Drivers from Texting While Driving

Folsom,CAL,USA -Government Technology, by Karen Wilkinson -Apr 1, 2010: -- In another effort to clamp down on distracted drivers, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has proposed a rule to ban commercial truck and bus drivers from texting while driving. The proposal, announced Wednesday, March 31, seeks to make permanent a temporary ban -- announced in January by DOT Secretary, Ray LaHood -- that applies to bus and commercial truck drivers of vehicles that weigh more than 10,000 pounds... The rule, however, would not affect talking on cell phones, using GPS devices or in-cab fleet management systems, a concern shared by industry officials...


* DOT Sets Stepped-Up Enforcement on

Washington,DC,USA -Transport Topics -8 April 2010: -- The Department of Transportation has kicked off a pilot program in New York and Connecticut to test whether concentrated law enforcement can make drivers put down their cell phones... “High-visibility enforcement” will be conducted in the Syracuse area beginning Thursday through April 17, and in the Hartford area from Saturday through April 16, DOT said... The pilot program includes an advertising campaign in both states, similar to other federally funded programs under which local law enforcement officers step up enforcement of drunk driving or seat-belt use... Researchers will evaluate whether the stepped up enforcement program causes drivers to change attitudes and behavior. Six states prohibit cell phone use while driving and 21 states ban texting while driving...

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Apr 2, 2010

Texting Rules * USA - about to get serious for truckers

Grain Valley,MO,USA -Land Line Magazine, by David Tanner -March 31, 2010: -- The U.S. DOT is proposing a new rule to say texting while driving will be a serious traffic violation and will carry serious penalties for commercial drivers... Leadership of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association plans to submit formal comments on the proposal during a 30-day public comment period that begins Thursday... “The Association absolutely believes you should not be texting while driving, but this new rule is, in many respects, a politically motivated gesture on the part of the agency,” said OOIDA Director of Regulatory Affairs, Joe Rajkovacz... “It’s fascinating to read this. They refer to public opinion polls that are in favor, and they actually admit to not having any studies that implicate CMV drivers and crash causation with texting”... Rajkovacz said laws already exist to deal with inattentive or reckless driving and should be enforced...

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Jan 22, 2010

FocusDriven Group * USA - To Combat Cellphone Use While Driving

Washington,DC,USA -The Washington Post -January 13, 2010: -- National Safety Council study show 28% of vehicle crashes happen during cellphone use. Includes talking (1.4M annually) or sending text messages (200K annually)... 120+ studies of cellphone use suggest hands-free doesn't eliminate distraction...

(Photo from jimadler: texting while driving)
FocusDriven group created patterned after Mothers Against Drunk Driving... Persuading people to break cellphone use while driving habit could be difficult... Enforcement of a texting ban requires officers to observe an act in driver lap. Hands-free devices make it possible to talk on cellphones w/o being observed...

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Sep 9, 2009

EXEMPTIONS * Canada - Manitoba cell ban includes trucker ones

Sask considers law too

Winnipeg,MAN,Canada -Today's Trucking -8 Sept2009: -- Manitoba legislators have accepted appeals by the trucking industry to make the provincial ban on cell phone use and texting more flexible for truck drivers... According to industry reports, the Manitoba Trucking Association convinced regulators to exempt CB radios and certain communication devices used specifically by drivers for dispatch and business-related purposes... Manitoba passed a law banning hand-held cell phones and similar communication devices in June. While the law won't be strictly enforced until next summer, police will still issue fines to anyone driving unsafely while using a cell phone... (Picture from QLine trucking: Canadian Bulk Hauling)

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Sep 13, 2007

PHONE USE * UK - May end in jail term

Drivers caught using a mobile phone while driving could soon face a minimum of two years in prison as prosecutors

London,UK -Fleet News Net -September 12, 2007: -- If it is proved that a driver was using a mobile phone, a charge of dangerous driving would be the starting point for prosecutors... If the accident was a fatality, drivers would face 14 years in prison under the charge of causing death by dangerous driving..

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