Cell phone usage has proven to be very distracting for drivers, and several states have banned the use of the hand-held devices for drivers. Now lawmakers in a dozen states are taking a broader approach to what electronic devices should be banned. Although there is little in the way of concrete evidence that links front seat DVD players, fax machines, iPods, and computers to accidents, it's pretty obvious that they're a distraction to the driver. To curb the usage of these devices, states like Texas and New York are considering fines ranging from $50 and $600 for offenses.
California has had some level of success enforcing these laws, as they've pulled over 3,200 drivers since 2003 for watching DVD movies. We agree that text messaging and watching a movie is way too much of a distraction for anybody that is simultaneously operating a two-ton vehicle, but it's tough to foresee how well such a law could be enforced. Users of their favorite digital devices may feel like they're being singled out, since major distractions like kids (I have three) and makeup application are still legal.
What is the craziest thing you've ever seen someone doing while driving?
[Source: USA Today]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Mike @ Jul 5th 2007 5:15PM
Once in Massachusetts, I saw a man wearing overalls and driving a very old pickup truck down the freeway while playing a baritone. Swear to god.
david @ Jul 9th 2007 4:11PM
I once saw a guy brushing his teeth while driving....no joke
chuck goolsbee @ Jul 5th 2007 5:21PM
Crazy stuff I've seen:
A guy shaving with both hands on the freeway.
A guy eating a bowl of cereal, with both hands while driving on the freeway.
Countless woem applying makeup, looking at the rear-view mirror, while driving on the freeway.
Porn on in-car DVDs (thankfully I didn't note what the driver was doing with his hands!)
A guy reading a newspaper while driving on the freeway.
Countless morons aimlessly lane wandering while holding a phone up to their heads.
PAY ATTENTION YOU IDIOTS!
--chuck
dontworryboutit @ Jul 5th 2007 5:21PM
One of the crazier things I've seen people doing while driving is reading while in stop & go traffic on the 110 North in L.A. I've seen people texting on their cell phones, too. It just doesn't make sense!!!
Richard @ Jul 5th 2007 5:26PM
My buddie's kid just peeled back the right front fender of her A4 because she was TEXTING while driving.
All these people need to understand basic physics in the most basic way...like what happens if you get hit with a 5 iron...now, multiply that by 4,000 pounds and 45 mph and think about someone hitting you.
BriGaid @ Jul 5th 2007 5:31PM
I've seen a lot of guys shaving in the mornings and people eating and texting. I usually close my eyes when i ride with my brother's driving habits. The craziest thing had to be some asian lady eating corn on the cobb as I took a left turn by her; I definitely had to double-take to make sure I was seeing correctly.
geo.stewart @ Jul 5th 2007 5:31PM
maybe not the craziest...but the busiest:
1 woman- applying makeup, drinking coffee, talking on the cell phone, and lighting a cigarette. I have NO idea how she planned on steering or knowing when to brake.
Crazy depends on your definition. the above certainly gets a mention in context.
Rob @ Jul 5th 2007 5:37PM
Wow, in that pic the are idling between 8K and 11K rpm! Just kidding, what kind of junk has a clock where the tach is supposed to be?
WillTheThrill @ Jul 6th 2007 10:40AM
Don't know, but it's right-hand drive though.
mikomi @ Jul 5th 2007 5:45PM
Hahaha. Good catch. I've seen some vehicles without tachs before, and they were manual too. but those were fairly old vehicles.
Another crazy thing I saw was late at night, i was on the left most lane on an 8-lane road (4 one way, 4 the other) slowing down to make a left turn when a blue car on the far right lane made a sudden 8-lane U-turn. In the process the lady cut off a tractor trailer, a few cars, and myself. And the only thing I could do, as well as everyone she cut off in both directions was just come to a complete stop and just hope she wasn't some drunkard about to smash into someone.
Tom Miller @ Jul 5th 2007 5:44PM
People who use their cars like phone booths are often worse than legally drunk drivers -- where's MADD? It's a mental distraction problem much more than a hand problem.
mikomi @ Jul 5th 2007 5:45PM
I've seen
- a young student driving a shiny new SUV showing off to girls waiting at a bus stop the new ride, and ends up revving up too much and rear ending someone in front of him. he sure got their attention
- a gentleman reading some documents in a convertible with the top off and papers floating into his face on a highway
- lady reading a magazine, looked like Cosmopolitan
- a gentleman using a cellphone with his left hand and holding a coffee mug in his right
- a lady reaching to the back of a van to yell at some children while driving down a neighbourhood road, with kids on the street!
- an elderly lady stopping in the middle of a busy intersection when the lights turned red. Although not really a dangerous situation since no one was willing to drive into/through the intersection until the lady got out of the way.
- a man with a laptop on his lap typing away while on a freeway
- a lady who just came off a freeway running a red light cutting a few people off while reading a novel
Aetius @ Jul 5th 2007 5:45PM
Maybe people should buy cars which keep them entertained? If I switched my Mazda with a Toyota, I sure as heck would wanna watch a DVD or send a text msg.
Evan Brom @ Jul 5th 2007 5:46PM
Honestly one of the most dangerous things I've done while driving was involuntary. It was a sneeze. Not only does one often close their eyes preceding a sneeze the total body reaction to some of them can cause sudden steering or gas/break inputs. Also once I happen to rub my eye after a spicy Mexican meal, that too caused me to close an eye and fight tears while driving.
geo.stewart @ Jul 5th 2007 5:50PM
with my allergies, I agree, though being somewhat conscientious, I tend to slow down to give myself room when I feel one coming on, and taking my feet off the pedals while I sneeze, and then jumping back on it.
best I can think of to mitigate.
Alex B @ Jul 5th 2007 6:24PM
The worst distraction I ever experienced was all of a sudden in the middle of the freeway feeling a large bug land on my leg (I was wearing shorts).
Even worse (maybe) is that when I looked down it wasn't there anymore.
Makes me wonder how many "cause unknown" fatal single-vehicle wrecks are caused by bugs - either biting/stinging or just causing the driver to freak-out?
Logik @ Jul 6th 2007 12:58AM
I remember reading somewhere that a girl got into a fatal accident because her passenger friend told her that she had a spider on her leg. The girl was terrified of spiders and entered into a panic state, which caused her to take her attention away from the road.
Mattlach @ Jul 6th 2007 10:06AM
I almost fell over fell over laughing when I saw this a few years ago:
In Newton, MA a woman was stopped at a red light in a Lincoln navigator with her sunroof open.
A squirrel randomly fell out of the tree, in through the sunroof and landed in her hair.
She jumped out of the SUV arms flailing and screaming, and the SUV started moving into the busy intersection (yay for automatic cars).
Luckily a random passer-by jumped in and applied the e-brake.
spots @ Jul 5th 2007 6:25PM
On I-95 one day, I passed a slow moving Nissan Quest with Ontario plates and saw that he had a laptop computer sitting in front of the steering wheel (where normal cars have the gauges) and was just typing away....
I've seen people pass on the shoulders countless times....
I was 2 or 3 vehicles in back of a blue mid 90's Buick LeSabre on I-295 when it suddenly stopped- in the right lane- thank GOD the gas tanker behind me was able to get over onto the shoulder and into the grass; otherwise it would have been a huge carbeque. The Buick driver looked around, turned on his turn signal (!) and exited to I-10 westbound. After a dead stop on the interstate....
Robert @ Jul 5th 2007 6:26PM
about a month ago I saw a guy on the 5 North here in LA trying to solve a Rubik's Cube. he was resting his wrists on the steering wheel and had both hands on the cube trying to solve it. I tried snapping a photo but I missed the shot as it was too distracting to try and take this guys photo and pay attention to the traffic in front of me.