The Maine Motor Transport Association generally supports the newly-announced ban on texting by commercial motor vehicle drivers in the interest of safety.

Highway safety is critically important to our industry, to all commercial vehicles, to passenger buses and the motoring public. If you think about it, our nation’s highways are the trucking industry’s workplace, and we must continue to make them safer for everyone’s benefit.

It is widely recognized that texting on a handheld phone while driving substantially elevates the risk of being involved in a crash. To promote highway safety, and further improve the trucking industry’s continually improving safety record and that of all commercial vehicles, we support DOT’s action to ban the use of handheld wireless devices by commercial drivers to send or receive text messages while driving.

As proof of the trucking industry’s highway safety progress, over the last 5 years the truck-involved fatality rate has declined 22 percent, the truck-involved injury rate has declined 25 percent, and both are at record lows.

To be clear, this ban does not affect fleet management devices that can be used for texting because the DOT ban specifies handheld devices. However, the DOT may need to consider specific regulations to limit texting on fleet management devices and to reduce distractions from other devices.

Also, many trucking companies already have rules and policies for their drivers to limit distractions from texting and other sources and we applaud those members for their continued commitment to highway safety.

Click HERE for Texting Ban Summary and Discussion Forum

Click HERE for DOT Press Release

Click HERE for American Trucking Associations Press Release

Click HERE for Secretary LaHood's Comments

Click HERE for the FMCSA Regulatory Compliance Guidance