The distracted driver
No, this isn’t a new superhero or supervillain, rather, it is something that is frowned upon on the motoring community. Yet everybody at one time or another, is guilty of it.
There is a new bill that will penalize drivers from “distracted driving.” Distracted driving has been defined in the bill as performing any of the following acts while driving a vehicle in motion or stopped in a red light: “using mobile communications to write, send, or read a text-based communication or to make or receive calls,” as well as “using an electronic entertainment or computing device to play games, watch movies, surf the Internet, compose messages, read e-books, perform calculations, and other similar acts.”
I am all for this bill as it will certainly cut down on the number of distracted drivers on the road. I myself was a fender bender victim of a distracted driver who was on the phone ,not hands free by the way, while changing lanes (more like swerving lanes)… in bumper to bumper traffic… on a solid white line area near a traffic light… with cars all around him… on broad daylight. Now how can you miss a big 1400kg car that is right beside you. Oh, I know, maybe that blind spot of yours is caused by YOUR HAND that is holding YOUR PHONE to YOUR EAR?
But while the bill is good and sound, one cannot help but wonder about other “acts” that fall into the bill’s grey area. Like using your phone’s GPS to get around, with voice directions, of course. Or maybe streaming music to your car stereo via bluetooth. You might be stuck in a traffic light and then decide to play that “oh-so-favorite-in-traffic-chill-out-music” you have saved up for that occasion only to be flagged down by an enforcer for “operating an electronic entertainment or computing device.” Trying to talk your way out might not work since it is clearly stated that using the said device is prohibited. And what’s different from this bill to other “text and drive” bills is that it also prohibits using a hands-free device to make or receive calls.
I do have to mention that this bill does not cover “distracted driving” such as getting change (in coins, no less) for your passengers while operating a motor vehicle that is in motion. Take drivers of jeepneys and empty taxis for example… for me, they are THE MOST distracted drivers out there. Try to follow one for a few meters… or even kilometers if you are really that patient. And you will see what I mean.
There are still lots of grey areas that are prone to misinterpretation, and in my personal experience these are the things that usually lead to public confusion. And after everybody gets confused, the agency tasked to enforce this law will then proceed to do their own interpretation and so starts another regression.
Then there are those PUV drivers who stage rallies at the slightest hint that they are in a disadvantage. Yes, they love to rally. Although, personally, I would prefer to do rallying in a dirt road with an all-wheel-drive car. Now, that’s something that doesn’t need much interpretation.
- Latest
