The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety Wednesday released the findings of its study, saying, “Hands-free technologies might make it easier for motorists to text, talk on the phone, or even use Facebook while they drive, but new findings from the  show dangerous mental distractions exist even when drivers keep their hands on the wheel and their eyes on the road.”

http://newsroom.aaa.com/2013/06/think-you-know-all-about-distracted-driving-think-again-says-aaa/

The study determined as a driver’s mental workload increases his or her reaction time slows and brain function is compromised.

“Drivers scan the road less and miss visual cues, potentially resulting in drivers not seeing items right in front of them including stop signs and pedestrian,” AAA said in a press release. “This is the most comprehensive study of its kind to look at the mental distraction of drivers and arms AAA with evidence to appeal to the public to not use these voice-to-text features while their vehicle is in motion.”

By 2018 there is expected to be a five-fold increase in so-called “infotainment” systems in new vehicles, which has the AAA nervous.

“There is a looming public safety crisis ahead with the future proliferation of these in-vehicle technologies,” AAA President and CEO Robert Darbelnet said in a statement. “It’s time to consider limiting new and potentially dangerous mental  distractions built into cars, particularly with the common public misperception that hands-free means risk-free.”

For the study, cognitive distraction expert Dr. David Strayer and his research team at the University of Utah measured brainwaves, eye movement and other metrics to find out what happens to drivers’ mental workload when they attempt to do multiple things at once.

The research incorporated:

* Cameras mounted inside an instrumented car to track eye and head movement of drivers.

* A Detection-Response-Task device known as the “DRT” was used to record driver reaction time in response to triggers of red and green lights added to their field of vision.

* A special electroencephalographic (EEG)-configured skull cap was used to chart participants’ brain activity so that researchers could determine mental workload.

Using research protocols borrowed from aviation psychology and a variety of performance metrics, the drivers did tasks such as listening to an audio book, talking on the phone, and listening and responding to voice-activated emails while behind the wheel.

Researchers used the results to rate the levels of mental distraction drivers experienced while performing each of the tasks.

Tasks such as listening to the radio ranked as a category “1” level of distraction or a minimal risk.

Talking on a cellphone, both handheld and hands-free, resulted in a “2” or a moderate risk.

Listening and responding to in-vehicle, voice-activated email features increased mental workload and distraction levels of the drivers to a “3” rating or one of extensive risk.

“These findings reinforce previous research that hands-free is not risk-free,” AAA Foundation President and CEO Peter Kissinger said in a statement. “Increased mental workload and cognitive distractions can lead to a type of tunnel vision or inattention blindness where motorists don’t see potential hazards right in front of them.”

Based on its research, AAA is asking the automotive industry to explore:

* Limiting use of voice-activated technology to core driving-related activities such as climate control, windshield wipers and cruise control, and to ensure these applications do not lead to increased safety risk due to mental distraction while the car is moving.

* Disabling certain functionalities of voice-to-text technologies such as using social media or interacting with email and text messages so that they are inoperable while the vehicle is in motion.

* Educating vehicle owners and mobile device users about the responsible use and safety risks for in-vehicle technologies.

AAA also wants to use its findings to start a discussion with policy makers, safety advocates and the auto industry about the new in-vehicle technologies.

AAA said that it has already met with safety advocates and provided copies of the report to CEOs of all major U.S. automakers.

“This study constitutes the most in-depth analysis to date of mental distractions behind the wheel,” Darbelnet said. “AAA is hopeful that it will serve as a stepping stone toward working in collaboration with automakers to promote our shared goal of improving safety for all drivers. Specifically, these increasingly common voice-driven, in-vehicle technologies should be limited to use for just core driving tasks unless the activity results in no significant driver distraction.”

http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/06/license_registration_and_cell.html

The proposed legislation has been introduced in the state Senate, and the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey is already questioning its constitutionality. This bill would essentially let police conduct a “search” and “seizure” of a motorist’s property without a warrant, the group argues.

The bill says that to look at a cellphone, police would have to believe that they had “reasonable grounds” to think that a law had been broken, according to The Ledger. The legislation has the support of law enforcement officers.

Distracted driving is a problem in the Garden State. The Ledger cited statistics from the state Division of Highway Traffic Safety: In 2011 there were 1,840 accidents involving hand-held cellphones in Jersey, which led to 807 injuries and six deaths.

The bill’s sponsor, Sen. James Holzapfel, told the newspaper that the proposed legislation would help police have at least a chance of determining what was going on at the time of an accident. Once a police officer had looked at the phone or texting, he or she would have to hand it back to the driver.

The ACLU, in turn, argues that the bill tramples of citizens’ privacy rights, and permits searches without proving probable cause, The Ledger reported.

New Jersey law professors are already predicting that the state Supreme Court will eventually have to address the legal issues raised by the bill.

This legislation would aid state and federal officials who are trying to crack-down on distracted driving, and enforce laws against motorists texting. If there is a crash, there is probable cause that a crime may have been committed. As The Ledger story pointed out, a police officer doesn’t need a search warrant to confiscate an open bottle of spirits.

That kind of legal logic should apply to cellphones, as well.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/06/06/8-injured-two-critical-in-vehicle-pileup-on-64-bridge-in-west-virginia/

The accident involving the several dozen vehicles took place on a bridge in St. Albans, near Charleston, that crosses over the Kanawha River.

The crashes happened after a rainstorm broke out in the area of the accident, AP reported.

Nine people, two of them critically hurt, were taken to local hospitals.

A group of Winfield High School seniors on their way to their graduation were temporarily left in the lurch, but then another bus came to take them to the ceremony, according to AP.

The younger Cuomo held a press conference Friday where he directed the state Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to implement tougher penalties for texting-while-driving for all drivers effective Saturday, as well as proposing new penalties for texting-while-driving for young and new drivers.

http://www.governor.ny.gov/press/05302013-texting-while-driving-penalties

In addition, the governor directed New York State Police  to increase enforcement of the texting-while-driving ban during the summer starting this weekend. There will be more checkpoints and troopers patrolling on the roads across the state throughout the summer.

“As father of three teenagers, I know firsthand the importance of instilling safe practices in our young drivers who are developing lifelong habits as they learn to navigate the road,” Cuomo said at the press conference.

“Inattention and inexperience is a deadly combination – one this legislation seeks to deter,” he said. “We are urging young and inexperienced drivers to keep their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel, while putting stronger penalties in place for drivers of all ages who violate the law and put others in danger. No parent should have to experience losing a child at the hands of a text message.”

Cuomo has taken a hard line on distracted drivers since he took office. In July 2011, he signed a new law to strengthen enforcement of texting-while-driving violations, which made using a handheld electronic device for activities such as texting while driving a primary traffic offense, giving law enforcement the power to stop motorists solely for engaging in this activity.

Additionally, the penalty for using a handheld device while driving was increased from two to three points. A driver who accumulates 11 points in an 18-month period loses their license.

Since the texting law was passed, there has been a 234 percent increase in the number of tickets issued for texting while driving in New York State from 2011 to 2012.

Statistics show that texting and using a cellphone while driving is a growing trend, whereas alcohol-related driving has declined, according to the Governor’s Office, which had a truckload of statistics to prove its point.

From 2005 to 2011, there has been roughly a 143 percent increase in cellphone-related crashes in New York State. In that same time period, there has been about an 18 percent decrease in alcohol-related crashes in the Empire State.

In 2011, there were 25,165 fatal and personal injury crashes involving distracted driving in New York, compared to 4,628 caused by alcohol-related driving.

In New York State, the number of tickets issued for texting-while-driving (30,166) approached the number of DWI/DWAI arrests (43,954) in 2012. In fact, between 2011 and 2012, there was a 234 percent increase in the number of tickets issued for texting while driving. In the same time period, there was a 4 percent decrease in the number of DWI/DWAI arrests.

Some 43 pervent of teenage drivers admit that they regularly text while driving, according to research released at a recent poster session of the Pediatric Academic Societies.

Sending or receiving a text takes a driver’s attention from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds which is the equivalent – at 55 miles per hour – of driving the length of an entire football field while blind, according to the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute.

There are three main types of distraction while driving: visual, taking your eyes off the road; manual, or taking your hands off the wheel; and cognitive, taking your mind off what you are doing.

Under the governor’s direction, the DMV this weekend increased the number of points earned against an individual’s driving record upon conviction for texting-while-driving and cell-phone related infractions from the current three points to five points — a big jump.

Cuomo is also proposing legislation that would establish tough new penalties for young and new drivers convicted of texting-while-driving. Under current law, probationary and junior licenses are suspended for 60 days for violations such as speeding, reckless driving, or following too closely behind another vehicle. Such licenses are revoked for six months (for probationary licenses) or 60 days (for junior licenses) if there is another violation within six months of the license being restored.

The governor’s proposed legislation will impose the same penalties on drivers with probationary and junior licenses for texting-while-driving that they now receive for speeding and reckless driving: 60-day suspensions for first convictions and revocations of 60 days (for junior licenses) or 6 months (for probationary licenses) for subsequent convictions within six months of the time a license is restored after suspension.

DMV Commissioner Barbara J. Fiala said, “With the increased use of mobile devices, we have all become more concerned about safety on our highways. I congratulate Governor Cuomo on his continued efforts to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving and for putting increased penalties in place for those who engage in the dangerous behavior of texting while driving.”

New York State Police Superintendent Joseph A. D’Amico said, “Distracted drivers will not be tolerated in New York State … Our message is clear: Motorists who use a cellphone or electronics device while driving will be ticketed.”

Ben Lieberman, Co-Chair of Distracted Operators Risk Casualties, who lost his son in a car crash, attended Friday’s news

“To say smartphone-driving impairs you to the level of a drunk driving is almost cliché nowadays,” Lieberman said.

“Most motorists know that drunk-driving comparison and truly believe the stat,” he said. “You don’t need an academic study to prove that if you take your eyes off the road, you are more likely to crash. Yet the behavior continues and traffic casualties are increasing rather than decreasing. Thank you Gov. Cuomo for treating this epidemic with urgency and common sense. Legislation that will deter this destructive behavior is badly needed and we are grateful for your passion and determination.”

The truck’s trailer somehow became unattached from the truck, and crashed into a minivan near Syracuse, N.Y., according to CNN.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/29/us/new-york-trucking-accident/index.html

There were eight people in the van, and only one, Shawn Mead, lived. His children Alyssa, 7, and Tyler, 4, died in the accident, CNN reported.

The other victims were: Teresa Bush, 26, and her daughters Jasmine, 5, and Alexis, 4; Lena Beckwith, 21; and Carino Vanorden, 24.

The accident happened on a rural road, and authorities are investigating why the trailer became unhitched.

Ryan Dorward, 26, and Duane Newton, 44, were in the truck and didn’t sustain any injuries.

http://www.seattlepi.com/news/us/article/Police-Multiple-people-dead-in-upstate-NY-crash-4559386.php

The multi-fatality crash took place on Route 13 not far from Truxton, N.Y., which is near Syracuse, AP reported.

According to the Courtland County Sheriff’s Department, there were eight passengers in the mini-van, and all but one of them died. Two people were in the tractor trailer, and they weren’t hurt.

Stormy weather may have been a factor in the crash, as rain, thunderstorms and hail were the conditions in the area, AP said.

AT&T,Verizon Wireless, Sprint and T-Mobile and about 200 other groups are taking part in a multimillion dollar ad campaign that will use AT&T’s “It Can Wait” slogan, according to the Associated Press.

http://news.yahoo.com/big-4-cellphone-carriers-unite-anti-texting-ads-042113131.html

There will be a blitz of public service announcements on TV and radio this summer warning about the dangers of texting and driving.

I’m happy to see this change of heart of the part of cellphone companies. As the AP story pointed out, at one point cellphone companies were lobbying against laws that banned cellphone use by drivers.

Now, with this campaign, they are actually warning consumers about the dangers that can be posed by misuse of their own products.

AT&T’s CEO told AP that the problem of texting and driving is a serious one and that it’s more powerful for the his company and his three rivals to pool their resources and convey one anti-texting message.

There are new government statistics that indicate that driver distraction is not causing  the number of vehicular accidents to increase. In fact, such accidents have been on a downward trend nationally.

I truly think this is a perfect of a case where it is better to be safe than sorry. We need to continue to crack down on driver distractions of all kinds, including texting.

It was all over the media yesterday that a bridge in Washington State had collapsed into a river. And now we know the cause of this accident: A semi truck, which was hauling drilling rig equipment, was crossing over the bridge when its tall load struck one of the bridge’s overhead girders, according to USA Today.  That caused the bridge to collapse.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/24/bridge-washington-state-collapsed-truck/2357389/

Two cars that were on the bridge, which spans the Skagit River,  plunged into the water, a 50-foot fall, USA Today reported. Three people wound up being sent to the hospital, but their injuries weren’t life threatening. No one was killed, miraculously.

‘The truck got off the bridge before it fell into the river.

As its turns out, the truck’s load hit the bridge’s support girder. That was all it took to trigger the collapse. That bridge was built in 1955, and apparently a bridge constructed today would not have reacted the same way as the one in Washington, according to USA Today.

Modern bridges have what the newspaper called “redundant features … designed to stay intact of a single section is damaged.” The Washington bridge is described as “fracture critical,” meaning that that whole shebang can come down if just one major part “fails,” USA Today said.

The bridge is part of what you might call this nation’s aging infrastructure. It was declared “functionally obsolete” by the National Bridge Inventory, according to USA Today, and was inspected two times last year and underwent some repairs.

The National Transportation Safety Board will be on the scene investigating the accident, and it will likely be weeks before the bridge is fixed.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/17/metro-north-train-crash_n_3295562.html?ncid=webmail1

The crash involved the Metro-North Railroad, which was caused by a derailment. A train that had left Grand Central Station to go to New Haven derailed near Fairfield, AP reported. Then a westbound train on an adjacent track hit the derailed train, causing some of its cars to derail.

Rail officials told AP that there was major damage to the to the two trains and the track.

Authorities were investigating the cause of the collision.

http://www.ntsb.gov/news/2013/130514.html

The NTSB cited research that showed that although impairment begins with the first drink, by 0.05 BAC (blood alcohol concentration), most drivers experience a decline in both cognitive and visual functions, which significantly increases the risk of a serious crash.

“Currently, over 100 countries on six continents have BAC limits set at 0.05 or lower,” the board said in a press release. “The NTSB has asked all 50 states to do the same.”

All in all, the NTSB released a list of 19 recommendations to eliminate alcohol-impaired driving crashes. The suggestions call for stronger laws, swifter enforcement and expanded use of technology.

“Most Americans think that we’ve solved the problem of impaired driving, but in fact, it’s still a national epidemic,” NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman said in a statement. “On average, every hour one person is killed and 20 more are injured.”

Each year in the United States, nearly 10,000 people are killed in crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers and more than 173,000 are injured, with 27,000 suffer incapacitating injuries, according to the NTSB.

Since the mid-1990s, even as total highway fatalities have fallen, the proportion of deaths from accidents involving an alcohol-impaired driver has remained constant at around 30 percent. In the last 30 years, nearly 440,000 people have died in alcohol-related crashes.

“The research clearly shows that drivers with a BAC above 0.05 are impaired and at a significantly greater risk of being involved in a crash where someone is killed or injured,” said Hersman.

Among the other findings, investigators said that high-visibility enforcement efforts, such as sobriety checkpoints and saturation patrols paired with media campaigns, deter alcohol-impaired driving. And to increase the effectiveness of these programs, the NTSB recommended that police use passive alcohol sensors to help better detect alcohol vapor in the ambient environment.

The NTSB, which in December 2012 recommended that states require ignition interlocks for all DWI offenders, said that because only about one in four offenders ordered to have an interlock actually have one installed, states should employ measures to improve interlock compliance.

Further, the board said that an intervention known as administrative license suspension, which allows law enforcement authorities to immediately suspend or revoke a driver’s license at the time of a DWI arrest, would be more effective if states required offenders to have an ignition interlock on their vehicles before licenses could be fully reinstated.

The NTSB recognized the effectiveness of specialized state DWI courts in addressing the particular challenges represented by repeat offenders. DWI courts hold offenders accountable through intensive monitoring, treatment for underlying disorders, alcohol testing and graduated sanctions. The NTSB recommended that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration assist states in maximizing their effectiveness by providing the courts with current best practices.

Over the past year, the NTSB sharpened its focus on impaired driving and has taken a number of actions, including issuing recommendations following a December 2012 special report on wrong-way driving.

That report found that more than 60 percent of wrong-way crashes were caused by alcohol-impaired drivers. In May last year, the NTSB hosted a forum on substance-impaired driving to understand how the latest research, technology, and countermeasures were being used by a range of advocacy groups as well as federal, state and local authorities to address substance-impaired driving.

Tuesday the NTSB issued 10 safety recommendations and reiterated nine others to NHTSA, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the National Sheriffs’ Association, the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety, all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia.

“Alcohol-impaired crashes are not accidents,” said Hersman. “They are crimes. They can – and should – be prevented. The tools exist. What is needed is the will.”