Talking on a cellphone while driving — hand-held or not — has been known for a long time to be dangerous, but government officials at every level have ducked addressing the reality. The National Transportation Safety Board finally has unequivocally and unanimously recognized that danger, and it is now the turn of lawmakers to acknowledge the reality and act accordingly.
The New England Journal of Medicine warned 14 years ago that the risk of a collision created by the mental distraction caused by talking on a cellphone while driving quadrupled, about the same as for legal intoxication. Ten years ago, two researchers at the University of Utah found that the distraction comes from conversing on the cellphones, not just handling the device. They also found that the risk is about the same as driving drunk.
Essentially, a driver’s cellphone conversation is outside the context of traffic, unlike a chat with a passenger. The potentially lethal distraction has little if anything to do with holding or not holding the phone.
The federal NTSB on Tuesday urged all states to ban drivers from using cellphone and other portable electronic devices, including hands-free sets. The agency strengthened its position after completing its probe into a 2010 Missouri crash, in which a 19-year-old driver engaged in 11 text messages in 13 minutes before plowing into the back of a tractor-trailer. Two school buses collided with the stopped trucks; two people died and 38 were injured.
Nine states now ban the use of hand-held phones but none prohibits hands-free phones while driving.
State Rep. Joe Souki, the Hawaii House transportation chairman, called the federal safety board’s urging for total ban "a bit radical," suggesting that "hands-free can serve a useful purpose for business." In Hawaii, all counties have enacted ordinances that allow drivers on cellphones only if using a Bluetooth headset or other hands-free device. That may be politically safe, but the fact remains that talking on a hands-free cellphone while behind the wheel is as dangerous as driving while conversing on a hand-held phone.
State lawmakers are not the first to shy away from the political risk of recognizing the reality of the issue. In 2003, federal transportation officials drafted a letter for then-Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta to send to governors, warning that "research has demonstrated that there is little, if any, difference between the use of hand-held and hands-free phones in contributing to the risk of driving while distracted." The letters never got sent, and Mineta has claimed to have never seen the draft.
"It’s going to be very unpopular with some people," NTSB Chairwoman Deborah Hersman acknowledged Tuesday about a total ban. "We’re not here to win a popularity contest. We’re here to do the right thing. This is a difficult recommendation, but it’s the right recommendation and it’s time."
That might be right, but enaction remains to be seen. State legislators across the country — like Souki — can count, and cellphone users are virtually everywhere. In 1998, 60 million Americans subscribed to wireless services, and that has grown to 310 million — about 96 percent of the population.
The sheer numbers of cellphone users, though, is the very reason for the masses to get the message that texting and cellphone use while driving — even hands off — are very risky activities that should cease. The NTSB’s call for a total ban gets the serious discussion going: Self-regulation must start happening, even as legal regulation looms. Another venue would be Congress, which has required states to abide by driving recommendations, such as speed limits or use of seat belts, in order to continue receiving funds for highway maintenance.
