Two trends in wireless are colliding in the ongoing debate over whether people should talk on cell phones while driving.
ExxonMobil Corp. last week announced a strict driver-safety policy that prohibits its employees from using cell phones while driving on company business. The company cited studies pointing to evidence that cell-phone use while driving increases the risk of accidents fourfold compared with drivers not using cell phones. Is ExxonMobil worried about higher insurance premiums or potential lawsuits? In North Carolina, a woman sued Mountainaire Farms after she was seriously injured and her 6-year-old daughter died when a Mountainaire Farms employee who allegedly was reaching for his cell phone hit them.
It’s likely other companies will implement policies similar to ExxonMobil’s for safety and financial reasons.
Meanwhile, New Jersey is set to go hands-free shortly. The state will implement fines between $100 and $250 for talking on wireless phones without using hands-free devices. Washington, D.C., also will implement a similar law July 1, and New York State has been hands-free for a few years now.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, location-based services are targeting the trucking industry and the like. Location-based services help companies manage fleets and track assets, including employees. For example, LBS can assist companies in plotting routes to make jobs like snow plowing more effective. It can also increase the response time of service companies because on-call employees can be located quickly. Even if these applications are done hands-free, one would assume people look down at the screens just like they glance at the radio when they are changing stations.
Behind trends to increase the electronic gadgetry in the vehicle and movements to take away potential driver distractions lies the debate about how many tasks a person should perform when driving. Despite all the laws and all of the tools and/or distractions in the car, it really comes down to each individual driver and knowing his own limitations. And that, I’m afraid, cannot be legislated.
