Experts agree: Cell phones, driving don't mix

Reports of controversial new statistics confirming the dangers of gabbing on cell phones while driving don't surprise the experts who respond to accidents.

Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration indicating driver distraction contributes to about 25 percent of all crashes was suppressed for political reasons, according to published reports Tuesday.

The combination of talking on the phone or texting while behind the wheel is a danger police officials such as Wheeling Sgt. Michael Porzycki are well aware of.

"Stay off the phone. When you're texting, your eyes are completely off the road," said Porzycki, supervisor of the police department's traffic unit.

Curiously, motorists pulled over for traffic violations often freely admit it was because of their cell phones. One frequent excuse is that the infraction occurred because a phone dropped, Porzycki said.

By contrast, when it comes to accident investigations, "it's rare to get someone who admits they were talking on the phone or texting," he noted.

Fears of angering Congress led the federal agency to quash research and warnings about the connection between crashes and using cell phones, its former head Jeffrey Runge told the New York Times.

Among the buried information was a letter to governors that never went out recommending drivers avoid using phones and hand-held devices except in emergencies. Additional data that never saw the light of day were findings of a 50 percent increase - from 4 percent to 6 percent - of motorists using cell phones between 2000 and 2002.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood issued a statement on the controversy saying he and the department of transportation were "deeply concerned drivers are taking their focus off the road to send text messages or use their cell phones."

The Itasca-based National Safety Council has pushed for a ban on cell phone use while driving since January. It can claim some success in Illinois with recent legislation approved by the General Assembly forbidding drivers from texting.

The texting law was spearheaded by Secretary of State Jesse White who also pushed the legislature to fund a two-year study into distracted driving, which didn't materialize.

In light of the new information, "we hope that issue will be revisited," White spokesman Dave Druker said.

Daily Herald wire services contributed to this report.