Distractions and motor vehicle collisions

Research is documenting that electronic devices constitute a significant distraction and a major causal contributor to  the carnage on our highways. 

Ever since phone records showed that a teenaged driver was attempting to text a message on her phone when she crossed the centerline to hit a semi-tractor head on--killing herself and her four passengers--media attention has been drawn to the danger of driver distraction caused by electronic devices.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 80 percent of auto crashes are caused by some form of driver distraction,  and electronic devices are becoming a primary cause of distraction.  The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute recently studies a full year's worth of traffic mishaps in 2006, before concluding that "seconday task distraction" is a "central factor" in causing collisions.