16-year-old driver who killed cyclist was speeding & using social media

[bikingshearer]

Originally Posted by merlinmurph

Really? That's your argument? It's a weak solution and one not especially thought thru. Disabling phones would be an action that ignores a multitude of situations.

- people commute in trains/busses/etc and can get a lot done during their commute
- people taking long trips in trains, etc
- passengers in cars
- you're assuming GPS is on. I rarely have mine on, only when I need it.

In addition, the screens in cars now are as bad as phones, if not worse. I can just see a day sometime in the very near future where those screens will have all the functionality of a phone. Facebook on the car screen. Now what do you do? Ugly, huh? You bet.

In the past when this was brought up, the response was usually something like yours. Well, it's not 1960 anymore, times change.

I wish I had an answer. This is a bike forum, I ride on the road regularly, and these deaths irritate and anger me as much as anybody. However, making knee-jerk responses like disabling phones reminds me of politicians doing the same thing in response to the latest tragedy.

The best solution I can think of is enforcement. The USA is especially lax when it comes to enforcing laws regarding driving, along with punishment. I think we've all heard stories on how Euro countries are much more strict and the punishments are harsh. I'd like to see that here. That would be a cultural change in which I have little faith in happening. This kid will get a slap on the wrist, enabling others to continue their bad habits.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks the proliferation of touch screens in cars is bad and very dangerous trend. You can quickly learn to operate a sound system or climate control system that has actual buttons without looking - pretty soon, your hand naturally goes for the button or dial you want without having to take your eye off the road. That simply is not possible with a touchscreen, especially one that requires having to scroll through multiple windows to get to what you want. How these have been allowed to exist is simply beyond me.

[verticaldoug]

Originally Posted by ripvanrando

The solution is enforcement of the law. Do we have any Europeans on the board? Do germans drink and drive? Do they use their phones while driving? The penalties are really, really steep over there.

When I used to work, I often commuted in my lifted Land Cruiser. In my guesstimation, over 50% of drivers in rush hour use their phones when driving to text, check email, do something online, etc. I was high enough to be able to see the phone in someone's lap and the driver banging away.

I don't believe there is any enforcement. And, even when they kill us, the price they pay is nothing.

If you remember Milton Olin was killed in 2014 on Mulholland Drive by a deputy Sheriff typing into his onboard computer in the patrol car.

The deputy sheriff was found not to be negligent, the sheriff office only gave a sligh directive on safe use of onboard computers while driving , and the county ended up paying $11.45 mm to settle the wrongful death suit.

LIE is too busy looking at their own screens to notice drivers looking at theirs.

[vav]

"In addition, the screens in cars now are as bad as phones, if not worse. I can just see a day sometime in the very near future where those screens will have all the functionality of a phone. Facebook on the car screen. Now what do you do? Ugly, huh? You bet."

100 % agree. Tesla comes to mind but other manufacturers are not far behind.

[unterhausen]

The screen in my prius is almost as big as a Tesla screen. I have to remind myself not to look at it. The worst part is they don't seem to be able to get bluetooth to work reliably with android, which is the main temptation to look at the screen for me.

I recall that Ford was touting their dashboard entertainment system a few years back. I'm not sure they ever had it available in cars though.

[Peter P.]

Originally Posted by NHAero

I recently read "A Deadly Wandering". It interweaves the story of a double fatality car crash caused by a texting driver, with what the research teaches us about human attention...

Thanks for reading the book. I recommend it every time one of these threads of cyclists being killed by distracted drivers comes up.

And if you read the book you'll see it's not just the physical distraction that causes the accident; there's a mental component as well. So don't fool yourself into thinking hands-free is safe.

When speaking of enhanced enforcement, it's next to impossible. Laws are typically written expressly forbidding even having the phone in hand, whether using it or not. But drivers hide the phone in their laps, and with the proliferation of extremely dark tinted windows, detection becomes even more difficult.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by CAAD

I just do not see how phones are not just completely banned from use while driving. The federal government needs to step in a just ban all use of devices while driving. Infuriates me reading these stories.

Very difficult to enforce and a LOT of states would whine..not only because of the political environment today(ANY idea by this Fed government means an auto='NO, NO"by some states.). They would also yell, 'state's rights'. Also many, many politicians get bribed by 'Big Phone' and 'Big Auto'..

Cars today are going in the opposite direction with giganto screens with everything on them, while driving..The tech is there to make distracted driving via various screens less of an issue, but alas, it ain't gonna happen.

This is obscene...but sells...

[soulspinner]

I have seen on many occaision at a stop light an officer doing nothing while glancing at a person on the phone. I know they are not moving but does anyone think they will put it down as they drive?

[ripvanrando]

I am pretty old school on car electronics. I hated the user interface on my 2014 Land Cruiser and especially the maladaptive braking. The interface is not so bad on the 2016 F350. Three features I really like on the 2018 740i, the heads up display shows the navigation very, very well. I like the lane keeping surprisingly, although is someone wants to clip apexes, they would hate it. It also won't let you rear end someone and doubt very much it would let you run off the road. I think it drives itself for a limited period of time before switching off, meaning you could in theory send a couple texts before the sensors in the steering wheel realize your hand is off and then these features disable. I guess other cars have similar technology and people then get careless and text more. I don't use a touchscreen when driving, I will use the controller or buttons to switch functions. I find using the touchscreen to take a lot of time and attention, but the idrive wheel knob thingie is much quicker

[boywander]

Originally Posted by flying

About the OP I wish they would devise a way for cell/wifi coverage to be cut when phone is moving above 5mph

RIP

There are cellular signal blocker that can easily be incorporated in all motor vehicles if only federal/states mandated.

Sad story for another senseless death.

[makoti]

Originally Posted by merlinmurph

Really? That's your argument? It's a weak solution and one not especially thought thru.

It's not an argument. It's an observation. As pointed out above, they are banned on planes. People survive. To say that people NEED all the apps on their phones to work ALL the time is utter nonsense.
Disable keyboard input, but not voice control. You can make a call. You are not out of touch. You can't text, facebook, IG, or whatever else the cool kids do today. You can't make videos of yourself while you drive. As soon as you get to 10mph, they lock.
And I agree, the screens in cars are bad. The phones mounted in the drivers view are bad. If you had to pull over and stop to change navigation, it would suck, but it would be safer.
No, it's not 1960. Laws need to change to reflect that. We have the tech to do this. We don't have the will.

[Tandem Rider]

This fatality is close to where I used to live and rode this stretch frequently, although I didn't know either of the people.

One encouraging piece of information, the company I work for is installing an app on all company phones with a 5mph lockout. When the phone exceeds 5mph, the voice and text, are paused and an auto generated message is sent to the other person. The vehicle has to go under 5mph before you can call or text out. The technology is there, we are just too entitled to allow it to be used.

[norcalbiker]

Originally Posted by zmalwo

she will be on probation and repeat the same thing all over again.

^^^this^^^

[merlinmurph]

Originally Posted by makoti

As pointed out above, they are banned on planes.

Uh, unless things have changed since the last time I was on a plane (3/16/20), they're not banned on planes. A lot of flights offer wifi so you can use your device during flight. Yes, you are asked to disable your device during takeoff and landing.

Again, disabling is incredibly shortsighted, and you haven't addressed any of the situations I mentioned. Like I said, my GPS is off almost all the time.

[zap]

Originally Posted by jb_11

As to this unfortunate event and the OP's call for 18yo minimum driving ages, it will be interesting to see if she's tried as an adult.

Pretty simple. If you have a DL you are an adult.

[merlinmurph]

Originally Posted by boywander

There are cellular signal blocker that can easily be incorporated in all motor vehicles if only federal/states mandated.

Sad story for another senseless death.

Yet, an option lots of cars have now is wifi, a mobile hotspot. Kind of crazy, huh?

Being 16, the driver will get minimum punishment, guaranteed.