Report: Nearly 6,000 deaths connected to driver distraction

Washington -- Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood kicked off a two-day summit on distracted driving this morning, calling it a "menace to society" and a "deadly epidemic."

LaHood wants to crack down on texting behind the wheel and other activities that take drivers' focus from the road as the government issued a report that said 6,000 deaths last year were linked to distracted driving.

"Every single time you take your eyes off the road or talk on the phone while you're driving, even for just a few seconds, you put your life in danger," LaHood said. "We need a combination of strong laws, tough enforcement and ongoing public education to make a difference."


The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said nearly 6,000 people died in 2008 in crashes involving distracted drivers, or about 15 percent of all road deaths. But there is no good data on how many of those deaths are linked to texting or using mobile phones. Every day, at least 800,000 vehicles are driven by someone using a hand-held cell phone.

More than 300 people are taking part in the summit of lawmakers, safety experts, agency officials, automakers and representatives of the wireless industry.

Kristin Backstrom, senior manager at the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, said "shame on us" if the summit focuses solely on cell phone and texting, noting there are lots of other distractions that lead to serious crashes. She noted that some teens have said that driving distracts them from other activities.

The relatives of several victims of distracted driving crashes are taking part in the summit, at a Washington hotel. One offered a painful story of the death of a relative because a driver was putting on makeup and not paying attention.

Much of the summit is aimed at the worst drivers -- the youngest ones on the roads.

"The worst offenders are the youngest, least experienced drivers: men and women under 20," LaHood said.

While automakers and LaHood want a ban on hand-held texting while driving, some have noted that it will be difficult for police to enforce prohibitions on texting or other distracted behavior.

"We cannot rely on legal action alone, because in reality, you can't legislative behavior," LaHood said. "There aren't enough police on patrol to catch everyone who's breaking the law."

Texting is growing in popularity, and has soared 500 percent in recent years among teens. Americans with 270 million cellular phones are sending more than 100 billion text messages a month.

In July, a 25-year-old tow truck driver in upstate New York was texting behind the wheel when he crashed through a fence, sideswiped a house and ended up in a swimming pool, injuring his passenger.

Last year, a commuter train engineer in Chatsworth, Calif., was texting and failed to stop at a red signal, hitting another train head on. The crash killed 25 people and injured 135 others.

Bills in Congress would withhold 25 percent of highway funding to states that won't agree to ban hand-held texting behind the wheel.

Eighteen states and the District of Columbia have banned hand-held texting by drivers; six states and the District of Columbia ban cell phone use by all drivers without using a hands-free device.

LaHood plans to unveil an action plan Thursday.

University of Wisconsin professor John Lee said not all technology leads to more distraction. He said a factory installed global positioning system is less distracting than unfolding a map while driving.