Blog Post from American Trucking Associations

ATA Joins Transportation Officials at DOT Distracted Driving Summit

September 30, 2009

Today and tomorrow, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) will take part in the Distracted Driving Summit, hosted by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). ATA representatives are meeting with senior transportation officials, elected officials, safety advocates, law enforcement representatives and academics to discuss how to best combat distracted driving. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood said the meetings are a "crucial first step in the efforts to put an end to distracted driving."

ATA strongly supports efforts by the DOT and the U.S. Senate to improve motorist safety by eliminating distracted driving. "We're pleased to have the support and leadership of Secretary LaHood and the Department of Transportation on this very important issue," said ATA President and CEO Bill Graves. "Improving driver performance by eliminating distractions, including those caused by text messaging, will greatly improve the safety of all motorists."

Since October 2008, ATA has advocated for policies that would minimize or eliminate driver distraction caused by using electronic devices while operating any type of motor vehicle. ATA's safety agenda explains that electronic communication devices hinder driver performance by taking the driver's eyes off the road. Drivers may become so absorbed in a text message that their ability to concentrate on driving is impaired.

ATA also supports the safety objectives in the "Avoiding Life-Endangering and Reckless Texting (ALERT) by Drivers Act of 2009." The bill, introduced July 29 by U.S. Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Mary Landrieu (D-La.), and Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), encourages states to ban texting while operating a motor vehicle. The bill requires all states to ban, within two years of the bill's passage, the writing, sending or reading of text messages using a hand-held mobile telephone or other portable electronic communication device. States that do not comply with the legislation risk losing 25 percent of their annual federal highway funding.

While ATA supports the objectives of the proposed legislation, we will work to ensure that the bill does not inadvertently require states to outlaw the use of truck cab fleet management systems that provide limited but necessary cargo-related information to professional drivers.

Click here to view ATA's progressive safety agenda.