Editorial: Driving motorists to distraction

Monday, Dec. 19, 2005 | 8:45 a.m.

A new federal report says about 10 percent of drivers on America's roads on any given day are talking on cell phones -- up from 8 percent just last year.

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration report, released Thursday, shows that 6 percent of those using phones while driving are holding them to their ears, up 1 percent from last year. The agency recommends motorists only use cell phones in an emergency.

Right. Year after year, in study after study, Americans have been warned of the dangers of talking on a phone while driving. Most motorists, the studies conclude, cannot adequately focus while talking on the phone.

Some major U.S. cities have adopted no-phone traffic laws, and 10 states and the District of Columbia banned cell-phone use among young drivers. Every year brings a new round of efforts to enact statewide phone prohibitions.

Wireless companies are quick to point out that cell phones are just another distraction on a list that already includes eating, drinking coffee, changing radio stations or CDs and tending to children. And they're right. American drivers are doing a lot of things behind the wheel that they shouldn't be doing. But we already have laws against distracted driving. What we need is better adherence to them.