• 29
  • November
    2011

Truck and bus drivers whose routes take them through Atlanta or other areas of Georgia are no longer allowed to use a hand-held cell phone while behind the wheel. Whether to talk or to text, semi-truck drivers and commercial bus drivers are prohibited from using hand-held phones by a new regulation announced by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) statistics blame distracted driving for 16 percent of traffic fatalities in 2009. The regulation banning the use of cell phones by large truck and bus drivers is aimed at curbing the number of fatal truck accidents that occur yearly related to distracted driving.

"Needless injuries and deaths happen when people are distracted behind the wheel," said Cynthia Quarterman, Administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). The PHMSA and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) created the joint-rulemaking outlawing hand-held cell phone use while behind the wheel.

While some large interstate trucking and busing companies already have their own company policies in place regarding distracted driving, the new rule standardizes the prohibition for all commercial truck and bus companies who travel across state lines.

Atlanta truck accident lawyers understand the importance of the distracted driving ban in promoting safety for all who travel Georgia highways. Passengers in cars and even SUVs stand little to no chance of escaping a truck accident unharmed based on the sheer difference in size and weight of a commercial truck or bus.

Truck and bus drivers who choose to violate the new rule against hand-held cell phones will face fines up to $2,750 for the first offense and may be at risk of losing their commercial driver's license (CDL) for repeat offenses. The truck and bus companies who employ commercial drivers will face fines up to $11,000 if they encourage drivers to use hand-held cell phones while behind the wheel.

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, "U.S. Transportation Secretary LaHood Announces Final Rule That Bans Hand-Held Cell Phone Use by Drivers of Buses and Large Trucks," 23 November 2011