{"id":7981,"date":"2014-02-26T09:48:10","date_gmt":"2014-02-26T14:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/?p=7981"},"modified":"2014-02-26T09:48:10","modified_gmt":"2014-02-26T14:48:10","slug":"time-to-get-serious-with-distracted-drivers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/time-to-get-serious-with-distracted-drivers\/","title":{"rendered":"Time to get serious with distracted drivers"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"DistractedIn March, the fine for being caught texting, \u00a0talking on your cell phone, or tinkering with your MP3 player while driving<\/strong> will jump from $155 to $280 in Ontario.<\/p>\n

That’s better, but not good enough.<\/p>\n

Distracted drivers are a growing threat to everyone sharing the road – other drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists. We are all<\/em> at risk.<\/p>\n

As the CBC reported<\/a>:<\/p>\n

The fine for distracted driving in Ontario will soon nearly double.<\/p>\n

As of March 18, driving with the display screen of a phone, computer, MP3 player or tablet computer visible to the driver will jump to $280 from $155. The total includes a $25 victim surcharge and $5 court costs.<\/p>\n

Last week Ontario chief justice Annemarie Bonkalo signed a judicial order approving the new fines.<\/p>\n

The fines will not apply to GPS screens.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It’s not enough. <\/strong>The legislation needs to be tougher. It needs to parallel the legislation about impaired driving, or street racing, with similar penalties and fines.<\/p>\n

Curiously, as The Star<\/a> notes, the provincial Liberals (an inconsistent and meandering party seemingly adrift the policy sea, but that’s another post…) didn’t support one of their own MPP’s private member’s bill which would have increased fines and added demerit points:<\/p>\n

…the Liberals haven\u2019t pushed a private member\u2019s bill introduced last year by one of their own MPPs, Bas Balkissoon (Scarborough-Rouge River), calling for fines between $300 and $700 and demerit points after one of his constituents, a young mother and community volunteer, was killed by a distracted driver.
\n\u201cThis is a serious, serious community safety issue,\u201d Balkissoon said. \u201cOne way or another, I\u2019ll get it.\u201d
\nHe said he was concerned any legislation the government introduces could be delayed by a spring election, and also said he was \u201cdisappointed\u201d Bonkalo set the fine at $280 and not his preferred level of $500, the Highway Traffic Act maximum.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So one has to question how seriously the Liberals take the problem.<\/p>\n

As the Economist<\/a> calls it, distracted driving is the “new drunk driving.”<\/p>\n

THE driver who killed Jennifer Smith’s mother in 2008 by hitting her car at a crossroads was sober and had never received a speeding ticket. But he was talking on his mobile phone. He was so engrossed that when the policeman later asked him what colour the traffic light had been, the driver said he had not even seen one.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As the article notes, even hands-free devices add to distracted driving:<\/p>\n

The human brain has to work harder to process language and communication with somebody who is not physically present. (Conversation with passengers is much less distracting, apparently because those passengers are also aware of the traffic situation and moderate their conversation.) A study by Carnegie Mellon University using brain imaging found that merely listening to somebody speak on the phone led to a 37% decrease in activity in the parietal lobe, where spatial tasks are processed. This suggests that hands-free use of mobile phones cannot help much. Such distractions, according to one study, make drivers more collision-prone than having a blood-alcohol level of .08%, the legal limit in America. It appears to raise the risk of an accident by four times. Texting multiplies the risk by several times again.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So we need some serious attention paid to technology and its social and cultural impact. One of the reasons our health care costs are skyrocketing seems to be easily found here: distracted drivers are causing an increasing number of accidents and deaths.<\/p>\n

\"Distracted<\/p>\n

Simply raising the fine won’t change that. Paying $280 may be more of an annoyance to people than a real game changer.<\/p>\n

Why don’t we treat it like street racing and stunt driving<\/a>? That gets the driver an immediate suspension of his\/her licence at the roadside, a\u00a0minimum<\/em> fine of $2,000, and it can be as high as $10,000. A street racing conviction can mean imprisonment for up to six months. It can also lead to a further suspension of the driver’s licence for up to two years for the first conviction and that can go as high as ten years for a second conviction! A convicted driver’s insurance rates increase 100% for the next three years, plus they get dinged six demerit points!<\/p>\n

Now that’s a serious<\/em> law. Distracted driving law? A slap on the wrist. The Ontario Ministry of Transportation’s own Road Safety Report for 2010<\/a> (the latest published) barely mentions distracted driving. Yet clearly the problem – and threat – is accelerating.<\/p>\n


\n\"DistractedEvery day I walk the local streets with my dogs<\/strong>, walk my wife to and from work, walk to the parks, shops or downtown. Many days I drive, too, but we walk more than drive.<\/p>\n

Every day – every<\/em> day – I see someone chatting on a cell phone, or looking away from the road at something in their laps or on a car seat, while driving. One hand on the wheel, the other holding a cell phone to their ear. Seldom looking right or left. Sometimes looking away for a significant time – I’ve seen cars travel a block with the driver not looking forward.<\/p>\n

Many times I’ve almost been hit by drivers on cell phones not looking at the road or in their mirrors, usually while they were making turns at intersections or backing up. I don’t what the local statistics are for tickets handed out for distracted driving, but I hope they’ve been able to keep up with the problem.<\/p>\n

If it’s this much of a local issue, if distracted driving is this frequent in a small town, it must be rampant in a large urban municipality like Toronto.<\/p>\n

Which means it’s a lot more dangerous to drive these days than ever before. A lot more dangerous to be a pedestrian or cyclist, too. The OPP<\/a> themselves state:<\/p>\n

Distracted driving is cited as a causal factor in 30 to 50 per cent of traffic collisions on Ontario, but is probably much higher due to under-reporting. Distracted Driving Kills! Using a cell phone or device capable of texting while driving can result in a fine of $155 under Section 78.1 of the Highway Traffic Act (HTA). Watching an entertainment device can result in a fine of $110 under Section 78 of the HTA.<\/p>\n

Other forms of distracted driving can result in a charge of Careless Driving with fines ranging from $400 to $2,000, a possible licence suspension of up to two years and\/or a jail term of not more than six months.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The ban on cell phone use (not the hands-free devices) while driving was launched by Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation<\/a> in late 2009. Although the fine doesn’t involve demerit points on your licence, it could lead to more, if the police press careless driving charges:<\/p>\n

There are no demerit points associated with an offence, and police will not be confiscating any hand-held devices used by a driver caught breaking the law.<\/p>\n

Drivers who endanger others because of any distraction, including hand-held and hands-free devices, may also still be charged with careless driving and will automatically receive six demerit points, fines up to $2,000 and\/or a jail term of six months. In some cases, your licence may be suspended for up to two years. You may even be charged with dangerous driving (a criminal offence).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I’m not the only person who thinks there should be higher fines, plus\u00a0both<\/em> demerit points and device confiscation of someone caught texting or using mobile devices while driving (again, not the hands-free systems, although they too cause distractions).<\/p>\n

A US Government site<\/a> notes:<\/p>\n

Distracted driving is a dangerous epidemic on America’s roadways. In 2012 alone, 3,328 were killed in distracted driving crashes.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The site lists numerous statistics:<\/p>\n

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