Study Confirms Distracted Driving Higher Among Teens

  The Bridgestone tire company recently commissioned a nationwide survey on distracted driving that showed that:

• many young drivers are in denial about their distracted driving tendencies;
• girls are far more likely to engage in distracted behavior behind the wheel than boys; and
• parents often set bad examples.

A New York Times article summarizing the survey can be found here.

The survey results confirm the overwhelming amount of research proving the dangers of driving while distracted. Prior studies are discussed here, here, here, and here.

If you want to know more about the dangers of distracted driving or would like to arrange a special presentation on the dangers of distracted driving for your community, school, or civic group please contact Aaron M. Mutnick of Tekell & Atkins, L.L.P. at 254-776-5095.

Texting While Driving Doubles Reaction Time

A recent study by Texas A&M University's Texas Transportation Institute found that texting, or emailing, while driving doubles reaction time and makes drivers more likely to miss a flashing light.


The study was composed of 42 drivers between the ages of 16 and 54 who drove on an 11-mile (17 km) closed test course while sending or receiving text messages, and again while focusing completely on the road.

In the interest of safety for both participants and the research staff, researchers minimized the complexity of the driving task, using a straight-line course that contained no hills, traffic or potential conflicts other than the construction zone barrels. Consequently, the driving demands that participants encountered were considerably lower than those they would encounter under real-world conditions.

The researchers then asked the drivers to stop when they saw a flashing yellow light and recorded their reaction time.  The typical reaction time without texting was between one and two seconds, but while texting it increased to three to four seconds, regardless of whether the driver was typing or reading a text.

The researchers also found that a texting driver was 11 times more likely to miss the flashing light.

The fact that the study was conducted in an actual driving environment is important. According to research manager Christine Yager most research on texting and driving has been limited to driving simulators, whereas this study involved participants driving an actual vehicle. While the researchers believed their results are more significant since the study was in an actual driving environment they wrote that, "it's frightening to think of how much more poorly our participants may have performed if the driving conditions were more consistent with routine driving."

Perhaps this research will reach some of Texas A&M's more influential elected alums.

Semi Truck Hits Train. Distracted Driving to Blame?

On Friday June 24, 2011 a semi-truck operated by John Davis Trucking Company, Inc. out of Battle Mountain, Nevada ran through a railroad crossing outside of Reno, Nevada and into an Amtrak passenger train  leaving six people dead and five passengers unaccounted for.

According to an Associated Press report, the crossing gates and blinking lights should have been visible a half-mile away. However tire skid marks at the scene, purportedly from the semi-truck, were less than 300 feet away from the crossing which has led authorities to investigate whether driver distraction or mechanical failure may be to blame for this tragedy.  Both of these possibilities seem to be plausible based on the truck driver's record and the trucking company's history.  More specifically, the trucker's driving record includes three speeding tickets while driving a commercial vehicle, one ticket for driving while talking on a cell phone, and the trucking company has been cited by the Nevada Department of Public Safety numerous times for crashes, unsafe driving, and for operating a truck with tire treads so exposed it had to be taken off the road.

As state and federal authorities continue their investigation they will undoubtedly try to extract data from the semi-truck's "black box," as well as from other electronic data that is stored on the truck's equipment.  This electronic data can often reveal the speed of the truck prior to the crash, the braking time before impact, and whether or not the driver was using a cell phone or other electronic communication device.  If you or a loved one are ever injured by a semi-truck it will be imperative to gather this same type of evidence, and if you should chose to hire a personal injury trial lawyer to help you do this make sure to ask the attorney if they have experience in retrieving this type of information.

Perry Vetoes Texting while Driving Ban

Although several cities in Texas, including Austin, already have a city-wide ban on texting Gov. Perry declared in his veto statement to HB 242 that a state-wide ban on texting while driving would be, " a government effort to micromanage the behavior of adults," and that the current Texas law prohibiting teenage drivers from texting while driving is sufficient. Gov. Perry also stated that, "the keys to dissuading drivers of all ages from texting while driving are information and education."

Gov. Perry did not draw a distinction between texting while driving and other harmful driving behaviors that the State has deemed worthy of curbing by both education and civil/criminal penalties, e.g. Click It or Ticket campaign and the Faces of Drunk Driving campaign.  In light of this veto, it is interesting to note that research has shown that talking on a cell phone impairs a driver's reaction time as much, if not more than, drunk driving.

The Texas Department of Transportation currently promotes a public awareness campaign called, "Talk. Text. Crash" which refers to distracted driving as a "deadly trend...in Texas, where nearly one in four crashes involves driver distraction."  Apparently Gov. Perry believes that the best way to curb this deadly trend that kills hundreds of Texans every year does not include any civil or criminal penalties.  If you desire to express your opinion either in support of the Governor or in opposition you may contact the Governor here; the text of the vetoed bill can be found here.

Distracted Driving: A Test

Studies have shown that we're bad multi-taskers. The same research has also shown that we think we're good multi-taskers.  Unfortunately, when our confidence to multi-task translates into getting behind a car wheel and picking up a cell phone we become dangerous multi-taskers. This is because when we drive and talk on our cell-phones a variety of manual, visual, and more importantly, cognitive distractions impair our ability to do either task well.

Take this test to see how well you pay attention in a distracting environment.  

Car Insurance: Are You Covered?

In most states, including Texas, it is mandatory for drivers to be insured for car accidents they cause (referred to as minimum liability coverage).   However, most drivers' experiences confirm the necessity of having additional insurance coverages to not only protect themselves from being sued for accidents they cause, but also to avoid paying out-of-pocket when a driver who caused an accident either had no insurance or insufficient insurance to cover their injuries and damages.

In Texas there are actually 8 different types of auto insurance coverages you can purchase, each with different limits of coverages.  In fact, the Texas legislature has deemed Personal Injury Protection and Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverages so important that if a consumer does not want those types of coverage the consumer must specifically reject those coverages in writing.

It is not only important for you to be familiar with the types of coverage you have purchased and their limits, but also to be familiar with the coverages you have rejected, as well as any endorsements and exclusions which further limit your coverage.

In addition to basic liability coverage, most drivers should consider purchasing the following types of insurance:

1. Medical Payments Coverage

What it pays: Your medical and funeral bills resulting from accidents, including those in which the other person is a pedestrian or bicyclist.

Who it covers: You, your family members, and passengers in your car, regardless of who caused the accident.

2. Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Coverage

What it pays: Same as medical payments coverage, plus 80 percent of lost income and the cost of hiring a caregiver for an injured person.

Who it covers: You, your family members, and passengers in your car, regardless of who caused the accident.

An insurance company must offer you $2,500 in PIP, but you can buy more. If you don’t want PIP, you must reject it in writing.

3. Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) Coverage

What it pays: Your expenses from an accident caused by an uninsured motorist or a motorist who did not have enough insurance to cover your bills, up to your policy’s dollar limits. Also pays for accidents caused by a hit-and-run driver if you reported the accident promptly to police.

• Bodily injury UM/UIM pays without deductibles for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, disfigurement, and permanent or partial disability.
• Property damage UM/UIM pays for auto repairs, a rental car, and damage to items in your car. There is an automatic $250 deductible, which means you must pay the first $250 of the repairs yourself.

Who it covers: You, your family members, passengers in your car, and others driving your car with your permission.

Insurers must offer UM/UIM coverage. If you don’t want it, you must reject it in writing.

4. Collision (Damage to Your Car) Coverage (If you still owe money on your car, your lender will require you to maintain collision and comprehensive coverages.)

What it pays: The cost of repairing or replacing your car after an accident. Payment is limited to your car’s actual cash value, minus your deductible. Actual cash value is the market value of a car like yours without damages.

Who it covers: You, your family members, passengers in your car, and others driving your car with your permission.

5. Comprehensive (Physical Damage Other than Collision) Coverage

What it pays: The cost of replacing or repairing your car if it is stolen or damaged by fire, vandalism, hail, or a cause other than a collision. Comprehensive coverage also pays for a rental car or other temporary transportation if your car is stolen. Your policy won’t pay for an auto theft unless you report it to police. Payment is limited to your car’s actual cash value, minus your deductible.

If you still owe money on your car, your lender will require you to have collision and comprehensive coverage.

Description of Insurance coverages from the Texas Department of Insurance

Distracted Driving > Drunk Driving

According to a study by the University of Utah's Applied Cognition Lab using a cell phone while driving, whether it’s hand-held or hands-free, delays a driver's reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent.


Please be mindful of the rules of the road, and consider following a "no-cell phone while driving" rule, as it will hopefully be the law very soon in most states. You can start by changing your voice-mail greeting to include as part of your message that you may not be answering the phone because you're driving.