Automakers support ban on texting

None of us claim that it is a safe practice, yet practically all of us have at one point or another texted, or at the very least dialed a phone, while driving. Well now, an organization called the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, which represents 11 automakers, including the Big Three, has moved to support an out right ban on the use of hand-held mobile phones while driving. They also stand in support of allowing hands-free devices in the form of the proprietary systems we have been seeing popping up in cars everywhere such as, Sync and OnStar.

The cause has also garnered the attention of the Fed, according to Detroit News, as Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood intends on hosting a two-day summit on distracted driving to address the issue. The article also reports the results of a 2008 survey which said 39% of drivers aged 18-30 text while driving, while only 4% of drivers over age 45 do the same.

The bill before the Senate, proposed by Sen. Chuck Schumer, would withhold highway funding to states that didn’t adopt a ban. Ford has officially endorsed the bill individually, but the Alliance has yet to endorse as a separate entity.

“”‚’Headset’ cell phone use is not substantially safer than ‘hand-held’ use because the primary risk associated with both tasks is answering, dialing and other tasks that require your eyes to be off the road. In contrast, ‘true hands-free’ phone use, such as voice activated systems, are less risky if they are designed well enough so the driver does not have to take their eyes off the road often or for long periods,” the Virginia Tech Institute told Detroit News, in support of the systems like Sync and OnStar.

– By: Stephen Calogera

Source: Detroit News