Automakers push NHTSA to postpone distracted driving rules

Automakers push NHTSA to postpone distracted driving rules

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it is close to releasing voluntary guidelines on preventing distracted driving. But the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers is lobbying for a more comprehensive approach that draws in cell phone companies, too, according to the Detroit News.

The best thing to do is get everybody around a table and to try to drive a more expeditious, comprehensive solution, said Mitch Bainwol, president and CEO of the Alliance.

NHTSAs guidelines would limit operation of a mobile device to one hand, limit the time needed to look away from the wheel to two seconds, limit the time needed to complete a task to 12 seconds, limit extraneous visual information in the drivers view, and limit manual inputs needed to operate a device.

The Alliance says that restricting automakers ability to offer in-vehicle mobile communication will just encourage drivers to use cell phones instead.