High-tech infotainment systems—the ones that allow drivers access to navigation, audio, and phone features—are distracting drivers for dangerously long periods of time, a new study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has found. [More]
distracted driving
New Drivers In Texas Have To Take Online Class About Distracted Driving
By 8.4.17
An average of nine people die every day from crashes caused by distracted drivers, a statistic that’s especially tragic when those deaths could be preventable. That’s why Texas is expanding its requirement for new drivers to learn more about what they shouldn’t be doing behind the wheel. [More]
Don’t Use Social Media Behind The Wheel: 9 People Per Day Are Killed In Crashes Involving Distracted Drivers
By 7.24.17
Distracted driving comes in many forms, from talking on the phone, to messing with a navigation system, or posing for selfies on the latest social media app. Over the weekend, the latter distraction, combined with another dangerous driving hazard — drunk driving — to claim the life of a teen in California. [More]
Spotify Reportedly Testing “Driving Mode” Feature
By 7.7.17
Spotify is reportedly testing a new system that would allow users to more easily control the service when behind the wheel. [More]
Popularizer Of ‘Designated Driver’ Concept Can’t Get Drivers To Put Phones Down
By 4.6.17
Jay Winsten is not a household name, but everyone recognizes the term “designated driver,” which the Harvard professor brought to the United States, popularized, and turned into a social norm back in the ’80s. Now Winsten is trying to address the driving danger of our time: Why won’t drivers put their phones down? [More]
Parents Of Child Killed By Distracted Driver Sue Apple For Not Blocking FaceTime While Driving
By 12.29.16
On Christmas Eve 2014, a driver distracted by using FaceTime on his iPhone crashed into another vehicle on I-35 in Texas, killing the 5-year-old girl in the back seat. The child’s parents and her older sister — all also injured in the collision — are now suing Apple, alleging that the company was negligent in not deploying safeguards that would restrict the use of FaceTime while driving. [More]
Feds Say New York’s “I Love NY” Highway Signs Violate The Law
By 11.30.16
Whether or not you actually feel affection toward New York, drivers cruising the state’s highways and byways are no doubt familiar with the proliferation of blue “I Love NY” signs that dot the roadside promoting tourism. But there’s one party that definitely doesn’t love the state for using those signs — the federal government. [More]
Safety Regulators Hope A “Driver Mode” On Phones Would Curb Distracted Driving
By 11.23.16
Whether it’s Tweeting, SnapChatting, playing Pokémon Go, or just sending a text while on the road, it’s clear that smartphones present a potentially deadly distraction for drivers. Most states have banned or restricted texting while driving, but these problems persist. Now federal safety regulators are proposing new guidelines to curb distracted driving, including asking phone manufacturers to include a “Driver Mode” that would limit the use of a smartphone while behind the wheel. [More]
Cops Disappointed That We Just Can’t Put Down Phones While Driving
By 9.2.16
For about as long as mobile phones have existed, traffic authorities have been on a campaign to get drivers to stop using them in our cars. The rise of texting over talking has made the problem even more hazardous, as communication requires at least one hand free and one eye on the screen. Cops are resorting to new tactics to catch and ticket texters, and they still aren’t deterring us. [More]
Driver Who Sideswiped Police Cruiser While Playing Pokémon Go: “That’s What I Get”
By 7.20.16
Police in Baltimore are adding to the chorus of law enforcement everywhere, urging folks to put down Pokémon Go while they’re driving after a man distracted by the game sideswiped an empty police cruiser. [More]
This Is What Can Happen When You Play Pokémon Go While Driving
By 7.14.16
For anyone who thinks that warnings like this one from AAA to not play Pokémon Go while driving aren’t necessary, just look at what happened to a New York guy’s car after he peeked at his Pokémon for just a second behind the wheel. [More]
AAA Would Like To Remind You Not To Use Pokémon Go While Driving
By 7.12.16
While it might seem obvious that you shouldn’t have your phone in front of your face for any reason while you’re operating heavy machinery, AAA would still like to remind all those Pokémon Go players out there to keep their eyes on the road and not on the app. [More]
Could You Get Sued For Texting Someone While They Are Driving?
By 5.6.16
However prevalent it may be, texting while driving is unsafe and, in most places, against the law. What those laws don’t address is the liability of the person on the other end of that text message. If you’re safe at home texting someone who then crashes their car, could you be held liable? It’s a possibility, according to some recent court rulings. [More]
Lawsuit Accuses Snapchat Of Negligence For Speed-Capturing Filter
By 4.28.16
On the list of dangerous and distracting activities you should not be doing while driving, Snapchatting behind the wheel is definitely up there, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has been reminding everyone this month on social media with the #justdrive hashtag. Nevertheless, the lure of a Snapchat filter that displays your speed can prove too strong for some drivers, resulting in at least one accident.
[More]
NHTSA Shames Distracted Drivers With #JustDrive Twitter Hashtag
By 4.25.16
Distracted drivers aren’t just making phone calls or taking their eyes off the road to text. Many of them are going on Twitter while they should be concentrating on driving. Which is why the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is trying to shame them into putting their phones down. [More]
New York Bill Would Require Drivers Involved In Crashes To Submit Phones To “Textalyzer”
By 4.12.16
Would a requirement to submit your phone to field testing to determine if you were texting or otherwise using the device before a motor vehicle crash prevent you from engaging in distracted driving? That’s the hope behind recently introduced legislation in New York and a device being dubbed a “textalyzer.” [More]
State Farm Patents Wearable Device System That Could Poke Drowsy Or Distracted Drivers
By 4.1.16
Unfortunately, we don’t all carry little elves on our person who can administer a hefty poke when we need to snap to attention. State Farm is working on a way to solve that issue with a patent for a wearable device system that can alert drivers who might be nodding off, distracted, or intoxicated behind the wheel. [More]
Study: Car Infotainment Systems Remain A Distraction, Despite Voice Command Functions
By 10.22.15
While it’s handy to use voice commands to make phone calls or change the radio station in your car — instead of taking your hands off the wheel to do so — according to a new study, infotainment systems still provide a distraction for drivers. [More]
