News

May 22 , 2004
State should ban DVDs for drivers

As if drivers distracted by cell-phone calls, mascara application, newspaper reading or munching on an Egg McMuffin at 70 mph aren't bad enough, now comes a new motorist diversion: the driver's-side DVD player.

No, we're not referring to the portable DVD players or VCRs found in the back of minivans, SUVs or other family wagons that entertain kids on car trips. Instead, we're talking about drivers watching movies from flip-down or dashboard screens. One driver, according to Sgt. D.S. Carr of the Virginia State Police, even fitted a video monitor where his air bag used to be.

All are installed aftermarket, usually in tricked-out rides, for anywhere from $500 upward.

Much as they would like to halt the proliferation of this latest driver distraction, Virginia law-enforcement officers' hands are tied. While state code forbids television receivers in cars forward of the driver's seat or otherwise visible to the driver, the law has not yet caught up with technology.

Because the code was written before the existence of DVD players and VCRs - and because the devices are video monitors, not television receivers - it's perfectly legal for a driver to zoom down I-264 while yakking on his cell phone and watching "Dude, Where's My Car?"

Next session, the General Assembly should make haste in yoking the law to the times. Legislation should be introduced to include DVDs and videocasettes among devices that are illegal to view from the driver's seat.

Driver inattention is already one of the leading causes of accidents in Hampton Roads. The last thing we need on our increasingly congested highways is a speeding, lane-switching motorist trying not to miss a minute of the latest action flick.