US: FocusDriven to campaign against distracted driving

14 Jan 2010

The Transportation Department and safety advocates have announced the creation of FocusDriven, an organization
dedicated to raising public awareness about the dangers of driving while talking on cell phones or texting on
handheld computers.

To date 19 states and the District of Columbia have banned texting while driving, while some other states restrict cell phone use in general while driving, but no state has completely banned it.

"I'm on a rampage about distracted driving. I'm not going to give up on it," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
"I'm going to do everything I can to try to make sure people drive safely - without cell phones, without
Bluetooth, without Blackberries."

FocusDriven is being established with the support of the department and the independent, nonprofit National Safety
Council. It will be led by Jennifer Smith, whose mother was killed in 2008 by a driver who was talking on his cell phone.