Put it down and drive!

During my commute home the other day I saw another all too common episode of lunacy behind the wheel. My commute is on urban highway, so I see a lot of indecision and apparently dysfunctional self-preservation instinct. In fact, in my brief 7-mile drive it is rare that I see fewer than 3-4 daily incidents of either myself or someone in front of me falling victim to an unconscious motorist. Un-signaled close-call lane changes, inexplicable braking (hallucinations, or maybe flashbacks) and extreme tailgating. And no, that’s not a new reality show.

On that particular day traffic was heavy, but folks weren’t generally being real aggressive. I usually drive close to the speed limit because I don’t want to accumulate points. I have a CDL and also my teen years are sadly long gone. Because of that tactic I have lots of opportunity to observe people as they pass me going their otherwise regionally acceptable 70mph in a 55 (yes, really). I had seen this car approaching in my left side mirror, but it never materialized in my side window. A bit later it was dropping back into my mirror view again, and then pulling forward once more and eventually flanking me.

After more of this back and forth passing game I noted that the young woman operating the car was spending way more time looking down at her lap than the road in front of her. She was oblivious to the cars stacking up behind her or her lack of speed control, intent on whatever the tiny screen was showing her instead. Typically I had only seen this level of smart-phone induced coma at traffic lights. You know the deal; the light is green 8-10 seconds before these people get a clue and start to move. And how dare we interrupt their reverie, if we object.

So, my question; what monster have we unleashed with our newfangled gadgetry? Just because cars are smarter than they used to be, should we be stupider? Having worked in fleet for quite a while, I’ve had lots of opportunity to interview those that have been in wrecks. Well over 90% of those discussions revealed that some form of inattention was the root cause, either on the part of the operator I was talking to or the other party involved. Sometimes both, the “I didn’t see him coming” syndrome.

And that is the point I drill down to. If you don’t watch the road, how can you possibly react quickly and decisively to the traffic maneuvers of someone else that isn’t paying attention either? Should all cars just have those wrap-around bump-cages like recreational go-karts at the track, or would waiting 5-10 minutes to return a text or stare at your Facebook feed really kill you? Certainly not waiting can kill you, or someone else. How about we just put the phones down so we all get home alive tonight. Simple enough.  

© 2016 D.W. Williams