Traffic fatalities up 9 percent - texting and social media partly to blame (1 Viewer)

I think driving and texting is about as bad as drunk driving, to be honest.

Looking at your phone at a red light. Ok enough so long as you move when it's green. Using your phone for GPS, that's great.

Texting, reading, etc.. no. Taking your eyes off the road is just too dangerous. Every day I see someone being stupid.. either driving 10-15MPH slower than everyone else, weaving, moving out of their lanes.. all while on their phones. One lady almost swerved into me while on her phone and after I laid on my horn for a good 20 seconds, then changed lanes to get past her, she's STILL ON HER PHONE!!!!!! Seriously, I'd have put my phone down in total shame after that.

I see delivery guys, maintenance/plumbers all on their phones (maybe heading to next job??) and they drive like crap.

Seriously, if it was a fine, cities could make a cool Million bucks in a day. I'm to the point where I actually get made when my wife or the kid starts to text me while I'm in the car. I'll call them and say, stop texting me stuff, I'm driving. What do you need?
 
There are solutions on the market. Of course, it doesn't help keep your family safe from other drivers, but for young drivers in particular - these solutions can be helpful to protect them from their own device use while driving.

For instance, this software-driven product disables the phones (except for 911 calls) at anytime that the car is in motion. This means no text, no social media, etc. But it also means no calls. (Note that it is supposedly tamper resistant): https://www.cellcontrol.com/stop-texting-while-driving-for-your-family

Less robust control apps allow key contacts (e.g. parents) to be contacted, and they also allow GPS navigation and music. 6 Mobile Applications to Prevent Distracted Driving Accidents - Article - Automotive Fleet

Other approaches have used external hardware (such as RFID) actively disable a cell phone from use in the driver's seat. These solutions are more expensive but they have the added benefit of allowing phone use in other parts of the car (including the driver placing the phone in the glovebox and using hands free capabilities). See, e.g. New RFID Device Could Jam Your Cell Phone While Your Car is Moving | Science | Smithsonian


Whether it is software or hardware, I think the solution lies in phone integration to the vehicle (so that, at minimum, voice calls, texts, and GPS navigation/Siri can all be hands free, audio only so that the driver's eyes remain on the road). We can never expect people to stop communication or disable access to GPS but if we can come up with a system by which the phone is cradled and unavailable to the driver except for hands' free voice-activation, I think we could go a long way.

Also, there has be to societal rejection of using the phone while driving. MADD and DUI outreach have been effective at this for drunk driving - the same needs to happen for device-distracted driving.
 
As I'm typing this, some jerk on his cell phone just swerved into my lane....or did I just swerve into his???
 
As I'm typing this, some jerk on his cell phone just swerved into my lane....or did I just swerve into his???

Maybe you just swerved into your own lane.

Flip yourself the bird.
 
Think he means the credit check. Not sure there is an actual background check. I don't think that's part of the Registration process.

Anyway......

If that is the case, a credit check is not the same as a background check, and even a credit check is not done if you are paying cash.
 
Not sure how you define "more dangerous" but if you're asking who knew that more people died every year in car crashes than by firearms, the answer is everyone.

I don't think raw numbers qualify the comparison to be more dangerous. You would need to standardize the comparison. Something along the lines of hours driven by Americans in cars divided by the number of car deaths . . . then compare with number of hours with firearms actively carried by Americans divided by the number of firearm deaths.

And based on the raw data, (about 38K deaths by cars and 13K deaths by firearms in 2015), for it to even be close, you would have to have one out of three Americans that rides in cars also actively carries a firearm. Of course, it's nowhere near that.

300+ million guns, 13k deaths.
260 million cars, 38k deaths.

More deaths per car than firearms. FACT.
 
300+ million guns, 13k deaths.
260 million cars, 38k deaths.

More deaths per car than firearms. FACT.



You know you're beat when someone ends their point with FACT in all caps like that.

Give it up chuck.
 
Dude swerved into my lane texting and driving this morning. He was holding phone up at head level...I guess he thought that might help. SMH

I've seen that "technique." I think their logic is that they've created a "heads up" display that allows them to watch the road and their phone at the same time.

But what they're really saying to everyone around them is: "You may want to put some room between me and you! I'm a moron!"
 
300+ million guns, 13k deaths.
260 million cars, 38k deaths.

More deaths per car than firearms. FACT.

To make it a meaningful stat you would have to look at a per usage rate
If cars are used everyday and guns are used once a month that increases the "danger" of guns

Anyway, stupid is the problem
Stupid behind a wheel and stupid behind a gun are both bad and should be avoided
 

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