Tuesday, October 07, 2014

EMERGENCY VEHICLE OPERATORS FAILING TO KEEP EYES ON ROAD

Drivers distracted by information technology equipment in cop cars, fire trucks and ambulances caused at least 180 traffic collisions in California last year

According to the Los Angeles Daily News, three Southern California residents were killed by distracted emergency vehicle operators and 140 others were injured throughout the state in the last two years. At least 180 California traffic collisions were caused by operators of cop cars, fire trucks and ambulances last year. Some of the drivers at the time were talking on cellphones, but others were paying attention to information technology equipment inside the emergency vehicles, and in both instances not keeping their eyes on the road.

Of course this is a nationwide problem, not just one for California. In order to prevent such collisions, most public safety agencies prohibit the drivers of their vehicles from using cellphones while driving. As for the distractions caused by information technology equipment, several police agencies have turned to software technology that shuts down in-car computers whenever the emergency vehicle exceeds a speed of 15 mph.

Let me suggest that the number of accidents caused by emergency vehicle operators far exceeds the number reported. It’s no secret that police officers investigating traffic collisions will write up reports of accidents involving other cops, and often firefighters, in such a way as to absolve them of any blame even though they were clearly at fault.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Horse Shit! That may have been the way it used to be, but not anymore. Cops are recorded by the dash cam traveling to the scene, during the workup and while interviewing the witnesses, including the cop involved.