Government Crackdown On Distracted Driving [Video]

Distracted driving has just become a huge priority for the Obama administration. They believe stronger laws at the state level and crackdowns by local law enforcement will prevent thousands of deaths and injuries caused by drivers using their smartphones and texting while driving. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said, "If you have good law enforcement, you can drive down distracted driving. We think we're going to make a difference here." Last year there were two federally funded programs to create hightened awareness about the dangers of distracted driving and in both cases, the programs proved highly successful.

LaHood even offered to pay for pilot programs in Delaware and California in an effort to replicate the results of last year's programs in Hartford. Conn. and Syracuse, NY.

The NTSB has already called for a total ban on the use of mobile devices while driving. The federal government does not have the authority to impose the ban, but they can sure force the states into action by withholding federal highway funds.

Research has shown that drivers using hand-held devices are four times more likely to crash and hands-free devices are not much safer. Below is a video of a crash survivor who was almost killed by a distracted driver.

[Washington Post]