• 31
  • October
    2011

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recently recommended a cell phone ban for all commercial truck drivers after a tractor semi-trailer collision with a passenger van killed 11 people in Kentucky. The NTSB recommended ban would forbid all commercial truck drivers from using cell phones, including hand-held and hands free cell phones, except in emergencies.

The fatal Kentucky crash occurred in March 2010 when a truck driver going southbound on Interstate 65, crossed the median and entered the northbound lane. The semitrailer then struck a 15-passenger van, killing himself and 11 other passengers in the van. Investigators found that the driver used his cell phone for text messages and phone calls a total of 69 times during the 24 hour period, including four calls minutes before the accident occurred.

Distracted driving, especially texting while driving, has come under the spotlight because of the dangers to everyone on the road. The National Safety Council estimates that 23 percent of crashes each year are caused by cell phone use. Commercial truck drivers using cell phones pose dangers to everyone due to their size and the severity of accidents they can cause.

In an effort to reduce distracted driving, the Department of Transportation banned commercial truck drivers from texting while driving last year. After this accident as well as an increase in distracted driving accidents among all drivers, the NTSB issued their recommendation and stated that distracted driving "can be especially lethal when the distracted driver is at the wheel of a vehicle that weighs 40 tons and travels at highway speeds."

The NTSB recommendation to ban all cell phone use by truckers, including hands-free phones, has caused some debate over the safety of using hands-free phones while driving. However, the majority of research on hands-free phones indicates that drivers cannot fully concentrate on driving and their conversation at the same time, regardless of using a hands-free cell phone.

Source: NTSB Wants Truck Drivers to Hang Up and Drive Safely