Distracted Driving Truckers May Be Violating the Law
Commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers include interstate truck and bus drivers and drivers who transport hazardous materials. The FMCSA prohibits them from texting or using hand-held mobile phones while operating their vehicles.
“Texting,” according to the FMCSA, means manually entering text into or reading text from an electronic device. “This includes, but is not limited to, short message service, e-mailing, instant messaging, a command or request to access a Web page, or pressing more than a single button to initiate or terminate a voice communication using a mobile phone,” the agency says.
CMV drivers are also prohibited from “reaching for or holding a mobile phone to conduct a voice communication, as well as dialing by pressing more than a single button.” Truck drivers who use a mobile phone while driving may operate only a hands-free phone that can be operated by the driver while restrained by properly adjusted safety belts.
Motor carriers – or trucking companies – also are barred from requiring or allowing their drivers to text or use a hand-held mobile phone while driving.
Drivers who violate the rules may face civil penalties up to $2,750 and disqualification as CMV operators after multiple offenses. Motor carriers may be subject to civil penalties up to $11,000.
But distracted driving includes more than using a cellphone. The NHTSA defines distracted driving as also:
- Eating
- Smoking
- Talking
- Grooming
- Using ‘in-built’ entertainment systems (such as radios and CD and DVD players)
- Talking with passengers.
The dangers are obvious. The FMCSA, still addressing cell phone use, says that texting drivers take their eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds. At 55 mph, this equates to a driver’s traveling the approximate length of a football field without looking at the roadway.
But anything that draws a driver’s attention from the task of safely handling a large commercial truck for even a few seconds is a hazard.
When a truck driver causes such a hazard, and you or a family member suffers serious injury or death because of that choice, it’s our role as your attorneys to aggressively protect your right to be compensated for your losses. We’ll work hard to hold the at-fault truck driver accountable.
