Distracted Driving In Big Trucks

Driven to Distraction

Big truck drivers have to meet tight delivery schedules and maintain contact with their dispatchers.  A New York Times article Driven To Distraction was published on September 28, 2009.  Big trucks and their drivers are now getting the scrutiny of Federal and State regulators regarding these distractions.

Killer Texting

The Automotive Tribune focused on Killer Texting and addressed foundation issues concerning this deadly distraction.  Big truck drivers have an equally problematic situation.  Commercial drivers need to maintain contact with their dispatchers.  However, these communications should be fairly predictable and systems engineering can logically decrease unnecessary or wasted time in communication.

4 Seconds = A Football Field

50 MPH means that in 4 seconds the truck would cover 300′.  Many research studies have been conducted but the simple fact is that taking your eyes off the road for 4 seconds results in a lot of distance covered and additional time is required to figure out what is going on when your eyes return to the roadway.  Additionally, you may have missed clues about upcoming hazards.

Inattention In Driving

Inattention in driving has resulted in heavy truck related fatalities increasing.  Since fatalities are only a small percentage of injuries then many more heavy truck injuries have occured.

A Legislative Battle Will Come

Driving a big truck and dealing with distractions is going to result in all sides of the industry getting into the fight.  This is a multi-faceted distraction with economic consequences for all players.  It may come down to a total re-assessment for all commercial electronic communication devices legally installed in commercial vehicles.

Minimized Commercial Distraction

Systems with minimized communication function in a commercial validation can work.  However, there ar no standards or recommended practice categories.  Industry and governmental advocates will end up at this point of agreement.

Killer Texting

Killer Texting — June 2, 2009

Texting while driving is a very Dangerous Game.  The Dangerous Game is that the driver will not get into an “Event”, and one defintion of “Event” is fatal collision.

Just about every driver thinks they are great.  If the driver has attended a High Performance Driver Training Program or other advanced driving program then the driver has not been as skilled or trained as best possible.

Dr Phil Show – Killer Texting

Dr Phil did a show that appeared recently dealing with Killer Texting.  This was a particularlly significant show because the Automotive Tribuen totally agrees that texting while driving is deadly.

In the last couple of decades before involvement with the Automotive Tribune many would say that I was active as a Forensic Engineer who specialized in accident reconstruction, vehicle product liability and vehicle black box technology.  For a period of years my firm analyzed approximately 1% of the annual traffic fatalalities in the US or about 400 annually.  I have done approximately 1,000 depositions and 100 trials and have concluded that there are a lot of ways to get killed.

Staying alive is frequently a 1 second window.  This window means that in the period of 1 second the killer vehicle will be some place ahead or behind of your travel path.  If you are not there when the other vehicle comes along you will not be struck.  On the left is a traffic sign from Ontario, Canada.  It communicates a very clear message.

It is critical to be able to recognize a hazard.  Texting puts the driver in a situation that they do not recognize hazards as far away as possible.  Also, texting takes the hands off the wheel so minor pot holes or debris on the roadway can pull the steering out from the driver’s knee.

Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

IIHS has a great deal of information at their web site about texting and highway safety.  Arkansas, California, Utah and Virginia are among the states that have banned texting for all drivers.  Here is a May 2009 report and map which details cellphone and texting bans.  IIHS also has an informative article Teen Drivers Often Ignore Bans On Using Cellphones and Texting.

Mathematics For Collision

Travelling at a constant 50 mph for one second means that the car will travel a distance of 73′.  A historic time associated with driver perception reaction time when exposed to an unexpected hazard when driving is 1.5 seconds which means that at 50 mph the car would travel a distance of 110′.  With the driver taking their eyes and concentration off the road and then looking up will require a perception reaction greater than the normal time and distance in addition to the fact that the driver does not have both hands on the wheel to control the car.  Very aggressive deceleration (-.7g) results in a stopping distance from 50 mph of 119′ and would take 3.25 seconds.

Many More Fatalities From Texting

Texting is addictive, otherwise drivers would not text when attempting to drive.  If you are going to not be where the wayward car is you must recognize the hazard before it gets to you.  There are some situations where it is impossible to avoid impact.  Those situations might be referred to as an Accident or Unplanned Impact.  Most Accidents are not Accidents they are properly defined as Collision Events.  Texting is a distraction and distractions on the highway causes collisions and collisions can be fatal.

On the left is a copy of an old post card that has been in my office for years.  In a morbid way this postcard seems appropriate.  Brock Yates and Andy Rooney would certainly have something to say about this very important and timely topic of Killer Texting.  It is very likely that each with their own unique brand of humorand communication, would provide a very focused assessment about being a driver that operates the car in a concerned manner.  Dr. Phil and the Automotive Tribune have made their comments about this deadly subject.