(NAPSI)—The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that driver distraction is a factor in at least 26 percent of all “tow-away” collisions. Many actions potentially can cause a driver to turn his or her attention away from the task of driving the vehicle: grooming oneself, eating or drinking, reaching for the radio controls, or using a cell phone.
Experts agree that sorting out the primary causes of these kinds of accidents will take additional crash-related data and research.
In the meantime, intelligent transportation systems (ITS) technologies already are helping to increase driver focus and safe driving and will help even more in the near future, according to the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America).
“ITS America strongly supports well-designed ITS technologies that help drivers to focus on driving and maintain control of their vehicle,” Harold Worrall, executive director of the Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority in Orlando, Fla., and a member of ITS America’s Board of Directors, recently told a congressional subcommittee looking into driver distraction.
Forward collision warning, night vision enhancement, and drowsy driver detection systems are some of the advanced technologies already providing safety benefits, he said.
Manufacturers automatically disable some advanced technology functions and features if they are deemed too complicated to use while driving. For example, some in-vehicle navigation systems will not allow drivers to manipulate the controls to select a destination while the vehicle is in motion.
Other manufacturers are developing intersection, road-departure and lane-change collision avoidance technologies, while rear-end and forward collision avoidance technologies already are helping cars and trucks sense the presence and speed of vehicles and objects in their lane of travel.
“Any regulatory decisions concerning the use of in-vehicle devices should be based on sound science and not anecdotal information,” says Worrall. “There is very little substantive research to assist lawmakers and regulators in crafting public policy and drafting guidelines to protect the public. We need more solid research.”
Currently, NHTSA and Transport Canada are conducting a study on a test track comparing the potential for driver distraction of dialing a phone, tuning a radio and retrieving e-mail when done manually or by voice activation. Another NHTSA study is looking at the difference in the level of distraction when using hand-held versus hands-free cell phones in real-world driving conditions. And ITS America has formed a special board-level task force to work with automakers and other groups on increasing driver focus.
ITS America is an educational and scientific public-private partnership of 600 member organizations promoting the use of advanced technologies in surface transportation. For additional information on intelligent transportation systems, contact: ITS America, Suite 800, 400 Virginia Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20024-2730, call (202) 484-4581, or visit the ITS America Web site at http://www.itsa.org.
