Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/769491
January 2017 | Overdrive | 13 Guidelines would limit cell phone while driving The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released a set of proposed guidelines to help cut down on distracted driving. The proposed volun- tary guidelines are Phase 2 of NHTSA's Driver Distraction Guidelines. NHTSA recommends that when a device is "paired" or linked to an in-vehicle system, the visual interface of the phone be inaccessible in order to prevent the driver from looking down at the phone. Only emergency services and notifications would be available. For phones that cannot be paired for any reason, NHTSA recommends a "driver mode" that locks out functions and tasks not intended to be used while driving, such as manual text entry, displaying video and photos except for maps, automatic scrolling text and displaying anything to be read, such as books, periodicals, web pages, social media and more. Until more technology is available to detect the differ- ence between a driver and a passenger, NHTSA says manual activation is the best option for now, but adds that it "expects technologies that support automatic driver mode activation to be implemented as soon as practicable." NHTSA is seeking public comment on its proposed recommendations through Feb. 3. To comment, go to Regulations.gov and search Docket No. NHTSA- 2013-0137-0059. – Matt Cole TA Petro_OVD0117_PG.indd 1 12/14/16 4:54 PM