The former head of the NHTSA has admitted that he was encouraged to bury the results of a study showing the mounting risk of cellphone use by drivers. The study is being released today under a Freedom of Information Act request.
The study concludes that using headsets does not eliminate a significant risk of accident, and estimates that cellphone usage was responsible for 955 fatalities and 240,000 accidents in total.
"In 2003, researchers at a federal agency proposed a long-term study of 10,000 drivers to assess the safety risk posed by cellphone use behind the wheel.
They sought the study based on evidence that such multitasking was a serious and growing threat on America's roadways.
But such an ambitious study never happened. And the researchers' agency, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, decided not to make public hundreds of pages of research and warnings about the use of phones by drivers - in part, officials say, because of concerns about angering Congress."
FULL STORY: U.S. Withheld Data on Risks of Distracted Driving
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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization
Village of Glen Ellyn
City of Laramie
American Planning Association, Sustainable Communities Division
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Cambridge, Maryland
Newport County Development Council: Connect Greater Newport
Rockdale County Board of Commissioners