Preventing Distracted Driving In The Workplace

By Author: Eliot Olivar
Total Articles: 9
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Many of us find ourselves text messaging, browsing the Web, or taking calls on our cell phones while driving, despite knowing the potential dangers of doing so. This ever-increasing use of technology in automobiles has created what the Department of Transportation has tabbed a distracted driving “epidemic”.i Distracted driving accounts for roughly 3,000 deaths each year, and according to the United State Department of Transportation, that amounts to 1 out of every 10 traffic related deaths in the U.S.ii An increasing number of companies have realized the possible consequences of distracted driving and subsequently have begun implementing rules and restrictions to ensure their employees keep their cell phones off.

According to an article in the New York Times, oil companies were among the first in the world to begin restricting their employees' use of cell phones after noticing an uptick in fatalities among its employees and contractors during the late 1990s. The result of these companies prohibiting cell phone and hand-free devices led to a 57% reduction in crashes.iii Other companies have begun to take notice of ...
... these staggering results, and continue striving to exceed them with tough rules and regulations. For example:

They use software like PhoneGuard and DriveSafely to help employees minimize cell phone use on the road. The software usually takes the form of a smartphone app that kicks in when a vehicle is in motion, routing calls to voicemail and auto responding to text messages.

They institute policies for people at company headquarters, minimizing their contact within the field. For example, they avoid scheduling teleconferences during parts of the day that are key for travel, and in board rooms, they post notices asking teleconference organizers to ask those on the road if they're parked in a safe location.

They institute penalties for disobeying the rules, including dismissal.iv

More companies will soon take notice of the results from the implementation of these new rules and regulations, which will continue to pay huge dividends in the fight against the distracted driving “epidemic”.

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