US Bus Drivers and Truckers are No Longer Allowed to Text Message While Driving
In the US, it is now illegal for truck drivers and bus drivers to text message while behind the steering wheel. This is good news for everyone else on the road, since it is often pedestrians and the occupants of the vehicles involved in the truck crash or bus accident that sustain serious injuries. Bus and large truck drivers caught violating the ban may be ordered to pay a maximum $2,750 fine. FoxNews.com says bus and trucking industry officials are supporting the texting ban.
According to research from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, motorists who text message have their eyes off the road for about 4.5 out of every 6 seconds. That’s plenty of time for a large truck crash or bus accident to happen. Truck drivers are up to 23 times more likely to crash a semi-truck, 18-wheeler truck, tractor-trailer, or any other kind of large truck when they are texting.
While Illinois is one of 19 US states that ban texting while driving for all motorists, that doesn’t mean that people are actually obeying the law. Unfortunately, many motor vehicle drivers continue to check, text, send, and receive messages when they are on the road, which can lead to Chicago motor vehicle crashes.
Distracted driving of any kind can kill people. Texting and talking on a cell phone have proved particularly dangerous. Many people simply cannot comprehend that what they are doing can destroy lives.
It’s bad enough to get involved in a bus accident or large truck crash with a driver who is paying attention. To get involved in a motor vehicle crash with a vehicle weighing thousands of pounds operated by a driver who isn’t paying attention to the road or doesn’t have both hands on the steering wheel because he/she is too busy sending a text message can lead to devastating consequences.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Announces Federal Ban on Texting for Commercial Truck Drivers, US Department of Transportation, January 26, 2010
Officials With Trucking and Bus Industries Support New Texting Ban, Fox News, January 26, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Cellphone laws, IIHS, January 2010
Please call our Chicago, Illinois truck accident law firm to discuss your distracted driving case.
