National Transportation Safety Board pushes to protect bus passengers

Distracted driving has become a focus in the transportation safety world as the number of accidents caused by people texting while driving, checking their email or talking on a cellphone increases on a daily basis.

People who choose to use cellphones while driving are taking the risk that they will be involved in an accident, but commercial drivers who choose to text or talk while behind the wheel risk not only their life in a serious bus accident, but the lives of all of their passengers.

The National Transportation Safety Board has been the agency spearheading a movement that would ban cell phone use by drivers on a state level, but the agency has gone even further to ensure the safety of passengers traveling on mass transit vehicles that often cross state lines.

“[Distracted driving] can be especially lethal when the distracted driver is at the wheel of a vehicle that weights 40 tons and travels at highway speeds,” warned the chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board as they announced their intention to focus on banning any mobile use at all by truck or bus drivers.

The first large step the agency took was last year, in 2010, when the agency prohibited truckers from being able to text while driving. Now, they plan to go even further this time around. “Texting or talking on the phone while driving can turn deadly in a matter of seconds, particularly when a big rig or bus is involved,” said that agency’s secretary Ray LaHood. “There is no call or text message that is worth risking.”

No one plans to become injured in a serious bus accident, but sadly they happen every day. If you have been injured at the negligent hands of another, there are personal injury attorneys that can help you turn your situation around and help bring you the compensation you deserve.

Source: Mobiledia, “Truckers Face Phone Ban While Driving,” Kendra Srivastava, Sept. 14, 2011