Many truck drivers already bracing for hand-held cell phone ban

The cell phone ban suggested Tuesday by the National Transportation Safety Board is still making headlines as millions of motorists and avid phone users debate the issues of safety and government intrusion.

Effective in January, interstate truck and bus drivers will be prohibited from using hand-held cell phones while operating their vehicle. Credit: Truckers News

I’ve been surprised, though, at how most journalists are seeking commentary from private individual and getting little input from truck drivers, small businesses and other commercial concerns whose traveling workers might use cell phones for more than ordinary yakking and info on what to pick up at the grocery store.

As you know, the NTSB recommendation is just a suggestion; the U.S. Department of Transportation or the states themselves would have to enact it.  And in fact,  35 states already ban texting for all drivers, and many ban cell phone use by school bus pilots and beginning motorists; see this handy chart from the National Conference of State legislatures, which also has other distracted driving material in its website’s transportation channel.   Editorials like this one from the Palm Beach Post already are calling a full-out ban “unlikely.”

But one ban you may not have heard of is about to take effect Jan. 3:  Interstate truck drivers no longer will be allowed to use hand-held devices, on pain of fines of $2,750 per violation.  This is a story worth looking into as workplace issue, a regulatory and compliance issue and an expense or liability issue for drivers and their employers.  Driver associations, for example, already are saying that enforcement of the new rule promulgated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will be enforced.

Here’s a list of major U.S. trucking firms from Yahoo! Finance; chances are some are in your backyard and if they handle interstate business, a business feature about how they plan to handle compliance, disciplinary action, driver education and other factors related to the ban could be quite interesting; the DOT has said that some 4 million drivers will be affected.  Your state transportation department can probably also direct you to local firms and driver associations.  Unions like the International Brotherhood of Teamsters may also be helpful on both the local and intrastate cell phone issues. If you have satellite radio, check out the trucking network; call-in program participants often divulge interesting behind-the-scenes info about the industry and you might hear some nuggets to follow up on.

Many third-party firms sell gadgets like on-board cameras, monitors that track driver behavior, driver education services and other safety-related consulting or hardware needs of the trucking industry; you might seek out some of these companies in your area for a fresh angle on how changes in laws ripple through the industry to create work and jobs for consultants.  And here’s an interesting column from TodaysTrucking.com that cites surveys which purport to show no significant risk for crash involvement by cell-phone using drivers.

This Seattle Times article gave a nod to the effect of a local ban on contractors and small businesses; you could enlarge upon that for a more detailed reaction story about the ways area businesses and commercial drivers use cell phones these days, and what a ban on all on-the-road communication might cost them in terms of time and money.