Transportation Secretary LaHood proposes regulations to stop distracted driving
May 18th, 2010 - 1:07 am ICT by BNO NewsWASHINGTON D.C. (BNO NEWS) – United States Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood proposed regulations to stop distracted driving by prohibiting the use of distracting electronic devices by on-duty railroad operating employees, the Office of Public Affairs announced on Monday.
The rules proposed will explicitly restrict and in some cases prohibit the use of cell phones and other hand held devices such as personal digital assistants (PDA’s) by safety critical employees, including locomotive engineers, conductors, switchmen, and other train employees.
“Operating a passenger or freight train demands the full and undivided attention of crewmembers at all times. Lives depend on it. We want to make sure that railroad employees know not to use hand held devices on the job because doing so jeopardizes safety,” said LaHood.
The rule would prohibit the use of an electronic device — be it personal or railroad supplied — if it interferes with that employee’s or another employee’s performance of safety-related duties. Railroad operating employees would be permitted to use cell phones or similar electronic devices under highly limited circumstances.
LaHood has been campaigning to stop and prevent distracted driving. He announced his plans during a seminal September 2009 Distracted Driving Summit. This campaign stems from the September 2008 collision between a Metrolink commuter train and a Union Pacific Railroad freight train in Chatsworth, California which killed 25 people.
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