Articles Tagged with Trucking

I’ve blogged here several times previously about the dangers of texting and driving – actually, of any smart phone use while driving.  But most of my posts have had to do with the everyday drivers out there – known legally as “private passenger vehicle operators.”

As annoying as it is to look at the car next to you and see an inconsiderate driver using his or her cell phone while behind the wheel, imagine seeing the driver of a 12-wheeler doing it.  And that’s the other major threat on the roadways:  Commercial truck drivers.  People who drive trucks for a living – whether as an employee of a company or as an independent trucker – are known legally as “CDL Operators.”  This stands for “Commercial Driver’s License.”  The legal penalties that CDL operators, or truck drivers, face for texting while driving and/or cell phone use while driving are more severe than for non-commercial drivers – and with good reason:  Weighing in at potentially several more tons than a private passenger vehicle, it takes much longer to stop or re-direct a truck, than it does for a sedan.  This is simple physics.  Most of those stiffer legal penalties are federal, not state – and many states need to catch up on making these laws tougher throughout the country. Continue reading