DOT to hang up on truckers? handheld cell use

DOT to hang up on truckersÆ handheld cell use    Truck drivers would be banned from using hand-held cell phones while operating a commercial vehicle under a rule proposed Friday by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. About 4 million drivers would be affected by the proposal.
   Drivers who reach for, hold or dial a cell phone would face civil penalties of up to $2,750 for each violation and risk losing their commercial drivers license for multiple offenses. States would also be able to suspend a CDL after two or more violations of state law on hand-held phone use.
   Companies that permit their drivers to use hand-held cell phones while driving face a maximum penalty of $11,000.
   The rulemaking is part of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood's campaign against distracted driving. Democratic senators John Rockefeller, chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, and Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey issued statements in support of the proposed rule. Last year they introduced legislation prohibiting the use of any electronic device that interferes with a driver's safe operation of a truck or bus.
   FMCSA research shows that using a hand-held cell phone while driving requires a commercial driver to take several risky steps. In particular, commercial drivers reaching for an object, such as a cell phone, while driving are three times more likely to be involved in a crash or other safety-critical event. Drivers dialing a hand-held cell phone while driving increase their risk by six times. Many of the largest carriers, such as UPS, Covenant Transport, and Wal-Mart, already have company policies in place banning their drivers from using hand-held phones, the agency said.
   In September, FMCSA issued a regulation banning text messaging while operating a commercial motor vehicle.
   Nearly 5,500 people died and a half-million were injured in crashes involving a distracted driver in 2009. Distraction-related fatalities represented 16 percent of overall traffic fatalities in 2009, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
   FMCSA is providing a 60-day comment period on its proposal.