“Techie World” may be the best description for the modern world. There seems to be something new every day.  We all have gadgets.  I bet that we all received one this Holiday season.  Cell phones are not just for making phone calls.  There are games, apps and GPS.  This makes it harder to avoid using a cell phone behind the wheel of a car.

We all know the dangers associated with texting while driving as well as other distracted driving behaviors. Different awareness programs and media campaigns have been organized to inform the nation’s drivers of the hazards associated with using the phone behind the wheel.  I am not sure anyone is paying attention to these! It has been estimated by the National Safety Council that talking on the phone causes 1.2 million crashes a year and texting another 100,000.  If we all know the danger, why do we still have this high number of crashes every year?  Many states have already enacted anti-texting while driving law hoping to make the roads safer for drivers.  The issue maybe how to regulate the laws because they are difficult to enforce.

Nearly 6 in 10 motorists admit to driving and talking on a cell phone, and 37 percent acknowledged to texting while behind the wheel of a car, according in a recent Harris Interactive Healthy Day poll.   This is alarming!  Drivers know the dangers of texting while driving but, still think they’re capable of doing it.  It can never happen to me!  This is the wrong attitude.  The use of phones behind the wheel of a motor vehicle is a major threat to traffic safety!  Not only for those committing the act, but also for drivers sharing the road.  Let’s wake up and save lives.  Dnt txt n drv!

Over 500,000 Large Truck and Commercial Vehicles were involved in accidents in the United States in 2010. Over 100,000 people sustained serious injuries in those accidents. Tragically over 5000 people died in these accidents according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Semi trucks referred to as “80,000-pound unguided missiles” by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, present a significant danger to all drivers and passengers on highways and roads in America. These risks are greater when truck drivers involve themselves in distracted driving or drowsy driving.

There have been many reported accidents caused by a distracted truck driver. One tragic incident happened in 2010 in Hart County, Kentucky.  The use of a cell phone brought about tragedy for a family and friends in a van. The National Transportation Safety Board (NSTB) during the investigation of the fatal accident found out that the truck driver had used his cell phone 69 times in the 24-hour period before the accident. This includes one phone call at the time of the accident. NTSB concluded that a distraction caused by using a cell phone led to the fatal accident.

The NTSB recommended that cell phone use, including talking on both hand-held and hands-free technologies, be banned for commercial drivers excluding emergency situations. Since the NTSB do not have the power to implement the ban, its recommendation could be a spring board for federal rule-making agencies and state legislators to act.

Authorities are also trying to make sure that truck drivers get enough rest so they won’t be fatigued while at work. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is in the final stage of changing the rules about hours-of-service regulations. At present, drivers have an allowable 11 driving hours in a day, changing this rule would limit drive time to 10 hours per day. The proposed rules mandate that drivers take at least 1 hour of break time during the day. Proposed modifications would also require drivers to include two overnight periods before their workweek would restart.

As a personal injury attorney, accidents involving semi trucks are often tragic and result in death, expensive medical bills or long-term rehabilitation. Both of these changes will defiantly save lives.

Do you remember the ZZ Top song “Arrested While Driving While Blind”? It referred to driving while so drunk that you couldn’t see.  Today’s version might include a verse about texting and driving and how it makes you blind to the road. Controlling a motor vehicle requires 100% of one’s attention at ALL times! If you do anything that draws your attention away from driving it puts you and others at risk of death. Distracted driving remains a problem on Kentucky roads even though we know its risks and dangers. According to car safety experts, 40% of car accidents are caused by distracted driving. I know this is hard to believe, but distracted driving is more dangerous than drunk driving.

The most common distraction for drivers is the use of cell phones while behind the wheel.  In Kentucky, 192 collisions were reported in 2010 due to use of cell phones for talking or texting while driving. Despite the implementation of a texting ban in Kentucky and other States nationwide, there are still people using their cell phones and there are still reported cases of car accidents caused by texting while driving.

The Study made by the Center for Cognitive Brain Imaging at Carnegie Mellon University found out that brain power used while driving decreases by 40% when a driver listens to conversation or music. Driving while doing other things is just like driving blind. Watch this video produced by Cindy Speaker and you can really see the danger that distracted driving can cause you and the people around you.

As a personal injury attorney, it troubles me to see reports of victims, especially teens, involved in car crashes caused by distracted driving. Do people not realize that once they move attention away from driving, they are putting their own lives and the lives of innocent people at a huge danger? Texting can wait or unimportant text messages can ruin lives. A call and a text can wait until you have reached your destination. Don’t cause a serious car accident by Driving While Blind.

Texting Ban Laws have been implemented in many States in an effort to eliminate the use of cell phone while driving and cut down on serious automobile accidents. Distracted driving has become the leading cause of auto accidents among teens. Each state uses different methods of enforcement of their law.  There are even additional regulations in some local jurisdictions. The use of hand held devices while driving are prohibited by all drivers in 9 states, the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands. 30 states and the District of Columbia restrict novice drivers from using cell phones.  The use of a cell phone while driving a school bus is prohibited in 19 states and the District of Columbia.

Recently, the National Safety Council congratulated the Pennsylvania General Assembly for the passage of Senate Bill 314 which makes sending text message while driving a violation for all drivers. Pennsylvania has become the 35^th State to outlaw text messaging while behind the wheel for all drivers. The law will take effect 120 days after it is signed. It has been estimated by NSC that because of S.B. 314, at least 12 lives will be saved each year and about 1,200 injuries requiring medical attention will be prevented in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania enforcement provision is key which permits police to pull over a driver for the violation alone. The fine will be $50.  Many states make texting while driving a secondary offense, which means their police can not pull the offender over unless there is another violation associated with it.

In an annual meeting in South Carolina, Horry Country Councilman urged legislators to pass a ban on texting and other cell phone use while driving in South Carolina. Some meeting participants support the idea while others did not. According to the legislators, such bill has been introduced but has not gone anywhere.

In Kentucky, about 150 tickets have been written in the first six months of active enforcement of distracted driving law. The texting ban by all drivers was implemented in July 2010 and police began writing tickets in January 2011. The law also bans use of all personal communications devices by drivers under 18. Distracted driving citations are $25 for first offense and then $50 plus court costs.

As a Kentucky Accident Attorney, I believe that more lives will be saved with the enforcement of texting ban, the campaign to stop distracted driving and increasing awareness of distracted driving.  It must start with allowing police to enforce the law.  To do this we must ban all cell phone use behind the wheel unless it is totally hands free.  This would allow police to pull over offenders and write tickets to anyone who is using a cell phone while driving.  A texting violation can be defended by simply stating “I was making a phone call”.  Texting bans are a start but we need to go further and ban all non hands free use of a cell phone while driving a car.

Distracted driving is the number one killer of American Teens as reported by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It has been reported that 16% of all drivers under the age of 20 that were involved in a fatal accident have been distracted while driving. Texting while driving is dangerous and deadly but teens, who are more prone to use cell phones while driving are at the highest risk, ignore this. Several states have passed statutes to ban the use of cell phones while driving. Pennsylvania is getting ready to join the more than 30 other states that ban all motorists from texting while driving.

A nationwide public service advertising campaign has been launched that hopes to reduce the number of deaths from distracted driving by educating young adult drivers about the dangers of texting while driving. The campaign is sponsored by state Attorney Generals and Consumer Protection agencies, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Ad Council. The campaign is reaching out to drivers through TV, radio, outdoor and digital public service announcements as well as Social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Connecticut and Tennessee are participating in the campaign to increase the awareness of teens of the law and the dangers of texting and driving. Attorney General George Jepsen of Connecticut said, “Laws prohibiting texting while driving are not enough. We need to change the culture, starting with the age group most proficient with new technology. They have the power to save lives by focusing on the road and not their cell phones while driving. Stop the texts to stop the wrecks.” Moreover, Attorney General Bob Cooper said, “Imagine closing your eyes while driving for the amount of time it takes to read a text message. Reading a text message is no less dangerous than any other diversion that takes your eyes off the road, and it can carry deadly consequences.”

The new public service ads show teens and adults that when you text and drive, you are not multitasking, but essentially driving blind. All of the ads direct audiences to a new campaign website where teens and young adults can find facts about the impact of texting while driving and tips to control the behavior.

As a personal attorney, I strongly support this new public service campaign. Texting while driving kills and changes lives in the process.  Statistically distracted driving is more dangerous thn drunk driving. This epidemic must be stopped. Our battle cry should be STOP THE TEXT TO STOP THE WRECKS.

During the 1990s, cell phones became widely available in the United States and since then their use has increased. Everyone has a cell phone. We now have smart phones and apps. They act like iPods. There is no telling what will be next. They seem to be attached to teens. There have been concerns have been over the risk of cancer from emitted radio-frequency (RF) waves.

The big question we have all heard is “Do cell phones increase the risk of brain tumors?” There have been several studies over the years to answer this question.

A new study throws doubts on the relation between cell phones and brain cancer. A Danish study of 358,403 people found the same cancer risks between people who had used a cell phone for about a decade and those who did not. The study concludes that It is not probable to get a tumor in the part of the brain closest to where phones are commonly held against the head. The radiation produced by cellular phones cannot instantly damage DNA and is not similar to stronger types of radiation like ultraviolet lights or X-rays. Radio Frequency waves from cell phones can heat up body tissues but are not thought to destroy human cells.

The results of the study may ease our minds over cancer risks from cell phone use but the fact is cell phone use can still be deadly.  As cell phone users are increasing, car accidents involving distracted driving are also increasing. Fatal accidents that end lives occur just because of the use of cell phones. Texting while driving is the major culprit and has reached the level of an epidemic from my point of view. Cell phones will continue to kill until we quit texting while driving.

As our world turns busier, techie and modern, more cases of distracted driving causing serious car accidents are occurring. Drivers are being distracted from the primary task of driving by using a cell phone, drinking or eating, talking to a passenger, grooming, reading maps, watching a video or even while changing the radio station or their MP3 player.  The Government is attempting to decrease this life-threatening practice. Many States had implemented laws to control cell phone use and texting while driving.

In 2009, there were two proposals at the Distracted Driving Summit that have now been adopted. Those are the banning of commercial bus and truck drivers from texting on the job and restricting train operators from using cell phones and other electronic devices while in the driver’s seat. The new rule is making an effort of prohibiting commercial truck drivers from texting while transporting hazardous materials was announced in 2010.

This September 2011, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) called for the government to do more on the increasingly prevalent danger of distracted driving on roadways. NTSB recommends banning commercial drivers from all non-emergency cell phone use.

Automobile accidents related to distracted driving are increasing. The use of a cell phone and hands-free device can take away the ability of the brain to focus on driving safely. Distraction results in driving errors and accidents that may harm seriously harm others on the road.

A distracted driver who causes a crash will be liable for the damages, medical expenses and even the period of unemployment of the victims.  With the help of an experienced accident attorney, it can be determined if the driver is really distracted at the time of the accident and evidences will be discovered.  This fact may result in punitive damages and a higher personal injury settlement or trial verdict.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommended that government should ban truckers from using cell phones, either hand-held or with hand-free device while driving except for emergencies.

This statement was made after a Kentucky crash on March 26, 2010, when a truck driver, Kenneth Laymon for Hester Inc., crossed a 65-foot median on the Interstate 65, went through a cable barrier, and hit a passenger van carrying 12 people.  11 people were killed including Laymon. Investigators found out that Laymon had been talking on his mobile phone 69 times while driving, including 4 calls minutes before the fatal accident.

Due to the increase in the number of accidents over the recent years, NTSB has made recommendations to ban cell phone use involving commercial drivers.  It started in 2002 wherein an accident occurred and the Board released a statement that banned cell phone use by rookie drivers.  This same ban was pushed on bus drivers in year 2004.  In 2008, cell phone ban was placed on commercial railroad and marine transportation operators.  In 2010, commercial drivers are banned from texting while on the road.  Now, they are considering a ban on the country’s 3.7 million commercial drivers from talking on cell phones.

According to U.S. Transportation Secretary LaHood, “It’s just too dangerous.  It can be especially lethal when the distracted driver is at the wheel of a vehicle that weighs 40 tons and travels at highway speeds.”  He stated in the DOT Web site, “Every time a commercial truck or bus driver takes his or her eyes off the road to use a cell phone, even for a few seconds, the driver places everyone around them at risk.”

A legislative or regulatory ban on texting for all drivers has already been recommended in 2009 and all hand-held phones be banned for all drivers, including truck drivers in February this year.

There should be a federal law banning cell phone use for all drivers, Secretary LaHood adds.

I argue.  Trucks and other commercial are more difficult to stop and maneuver.  Your time to react takes longer.  Distractions such as cell phones have no place in commercial vehicles.  A ban on cell phone use will prevent serious injury truck accidents in Kentucky and across the United States.

As parents, our number one priority is our kids. I have two daughters and am probably over protective. We set a lot of limitations, precautions and care for them. It is hard to trust others with our kids, maybe even with our own parents (their grandparents!).

Guess what? Maybe we are wrong. There’s a new study which shows that children are less likely to be injured if grandparents are driving as compared to the parents. That is your kids are more likely to be involved in a car accident when they are with you. I find this unbelievable!

The study was based on data from nearly 12, 000 children from 15 U.S. states between 2003 and 2007 injured in car crashes involving children younger than 16. This study was published in the journal Pediatrics. Dr. Fred M. Henretig, an emergency medicine physician at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, is the lead researcher on the study. 0.7 percent of children were injured in the crash when grandparents were driving compared to 1 percent when parents were the one driving.

Older drivers are just not as safe. That is the general consensus. We think that grandparents driving is worse because they used old cars and they lack knowledge in new technologies.

There are factors that Dr. Henretig cited as reasons for the lower injury risk of children when with their grandparents.

* Grandparents drive at a lower speed
* Grandparents do not following the car in front of them quite as closely,
* Grandparents think that grandchildren are special cargo,
* Grandparents are less distracted than busy working parents tend to be.
* Grandparents focus on their driving and refrain from distractions like using cell phones, fiddling with the radio, eating while driving or thinking about their work.

The bottom line is that the risk of being injured in a Kentucky car accident goes down when we care about what we are doing and are not distracted. Focus on driving and your risk of being injured in a car accident will likely decrease.

Are you horrified hearing news about fatal crashes that happen daily?  In Kentucky, countless number of automobile accidents have already occurred this year but also from the past years causing deaths and serious injuries.  Is this like a trend that we just need to get used to it?  This is just the way it is.  Wrong!  We need to act now to prevent fatal car accidents caused by the negligence of distracted drivers.

Our primary responsibility as a driver is to operate our vehicle safely.  Here are some tips to keep us focused while driving. 

•       Pay attention when you are driving, even if you are familiar with the area.  Keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel.
•       Don’t text or talk on your cell phone while you are driving.  If you need to make or answer a call, pull over to a safe place.  But it is best to turn off your cell phone if possible.
•       Limit in-car distractions such as fiddling with the stereo, eating, putting on makeup and other activities that can distract your driving ability.  Too much noise and movement around you could also be dangerous because it can keep you from seeing important stuff on the road.
•       Always buckle up.  Seatbelts are savior during car accidents.
•       Use your head.  Make smart decisions, use your common sense, follow rules of the road and you’ll be a safer driver.
•        If you need some motivation on your driving, listen to those who have lost children, parents and friends as a result of distracted driving.  It will surely change your mind and move you to be a more responsible driver. 

I know that the do’s and don’ts are easy to remember but not so easy to do.  Let’s try to ignore our phone and pay attention to the road.  Your life and others lives depend on it.