I can’t remember the make and model of the vehicle at a stoplight a short distance from my house awhile back.
Smallish might describe it, maybe a compact SUV.
Normally, make and model would be the kinds of details I’d try to lock in when something surprises me while I'm driving. But in this case the specific car wasn’t really the issue.
What I spotted was.
A movie or a TV show – I can’t be sure which – was playing on a cellphone mounted on the windshield close to the driver. The video had been playing before the driver stopped for the light, and as I waited to move, I could see some faces and what looked like a field on the screen.
And then the light changed and we went our own ways.
Now, I’ve seen more than enough people texting or even scrolling
on social media as they drive to know that cellphone distraction, despite hands-free device laws in Michigan and other states, remains a big problem.
What I don’t recall seeing is someone actually watching a show or movie that’s visible to everybody else driving nearby. I’ve certainly heard of examples with tragic consequences involving not-so-autonomous vehicle modes.But this struck me as remarkable, and I’m going to be a bit judgmental here.
Because it’s crazy.
There is no way I could fully disengage from a video playing in my line of sight while I drive. It’s not that I’m never distracted by my phone or something someone else in the car is doing or watching.
I just know that this was a step beyond the typical distraction that happens everyday on the roads. It also seems like an obviously dumb thing to do.
Distraction on the road kills. That’s not some out-of-touch public service announcement. It’s just a fact.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says distracted driving killed 3,275 people nationwide in just 2023.
Distraction, of course, isn’t just about cellphones. Applying eyeliner or mustache wax at 70 mph or even much slower might lead to a very bad outcome, too.
And giant infotainment screens certainly test the limits of human focus.
Automakers at least tout safety features, such as screens that only the passenger should be able to see when those screens are able to play some kind of video, like a show or a movie.
But using your mounted phone to catch an episode while you’re headed to work is just a bad idea. Do I need to say don’t do it?
Michigan’s hands-free law from 2023 makes it illegal to manually use a cell phone while driving, but a prominent law firm, Michigan Auto Law, describes some egregious examples on its website of long-haul truckers streaming movies, even porn, while the phone is in hands-free mode, describing this as a “dangerous loophole.”
Firm attorney and owner Steven Gursten said in an email that the loophole "is not immediately obvious from the phrasing and structure of the statute, which is probably why no one in the media addressed it when they were writing about the new law’s passage in 2023."
He gave me an overview of how the law carves out an exception for mounted cellphones.
"The prohibition on watching videos on the phone while a person is driving does not apply if the phone is in voice-operated or hands-free mode or the phone is placed in a mount. If any of those conditions are met, then drivers are permitted (or at least not prohibited) under the statute to watch their videos on their phones while they’re behind the wheel," he said.
I asked Alicia Sledge, director of the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, a division of the State Police, about this situation.
Sledge said that while someone might consider it a loophole to watch a video while driving with a cellphone mounted in a vehicle, that can still get you in trouble in Michigan. She pointed to the state’s law against careless driving.
“If you’re taking your eyes away from the road for extended periods of time, that is being careless. You can’t do that and at the same time effectively drive the vehicle or be in control of the vehicle in a safe manner,” she said.
She’s heard her share of crazy distracted driving stories − eating a bowl of cereal, reading the newspaper or using social media while driving − and didn’t sound surprised by the example I gave her.
Distraction predates cellphones, but they have made it worse, she said. But cellphones also aren’t really the problem, she said, just using them while driving.
And, of course, any kind of distraction can be a problem when you’re driving.
What have you seen?
What kinds of distracted driving activities have made you question someone’s sanity?
I want to hear about them. Make your tales of danger short, a couple of sentences, and tell me who you are and where you live, and maybe I can share a few down the road. Send them to elawrence@freepress.com, and take it easy out there.
Eric D. Lawrence is the senior car culture reporter at the Detroit Free Press, and he also writes about recreational vehicles, boats and bikes. Send your tips and suggestions to elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Driving isn't the time to be watching a movie
