School Bus Drivers & Cell Phones

[alohabear]

As seen on GMA this morning, Is it dangerous for School bus drivers to talk on cell phones?

Feb. 7, 2007 — About 17,000 children are injured in school bus accidents every year, and federal officials say drivers who talk on cell phones while driving could be partly to blame.

In Prince Georges County in Maryland, a bus driver on a cell phone lost control of the wheel and 30 students ended up in the hospital.

In another accident, 8-year-old Deneik Brownlee's right forearm was severed. The bus driver was reportedly distracted by his cell phone.

What do you folks think? Is this a bad thing?
My take on this is the drivers are WORKING and should not be on their phones(at ANY job) while at work.
Have you ever seen this in Hawaii with our school bus driver or city bus driver?

[1stwahine]

Re: School Bus Drivers & Cell Phones

What do you folks think? Is this a bad thing?
My take on this is the drivers are WORKING and should not be on their phones(at ANY job) while at work. Have you ever seen this in Hawaii with our school bus driver or city bus driver?

I can't say for School Bus Drivers but I have seen many City Bus Drivers talking on their cell phones while driving! Yes, I feel it is dangerous for them to be using their cell phones while operating a vehicle, especially, a Bus carrying passengers whom depend on them to bring them to and fro safely to wherever they may go. Of course, there are accidents not planned and unfortunate. The use of a cell phone by a Bus Operator increases the chance of having one.

Auntie Lynn

[craigwatanabe]

Re: School Bus Drivers & Cell Phones

I have mixed views on the use of cell phones while driving as it depends on each driver. Some are capable of polychronic activities (not to be confused with multi-tasking) and some aren't.

But when it comes to being "On the clock", personal activities should cease and that includes personal use of cell phones, listening to iPods, etc. Your boss owns your okole while you're earning your wages and if company policy prohibit the use of these devices during company time and you are insubordinate to those policies, that's grounds for discipline up to termination.

Even if it's not a safety issue, there is a level of professionalism that one projects while on the clock. At Home Depot there is a company policy that prohibits the use and carrying of personal cell phones while on the clock.

The reason is image and attention to your job. A sales associate jabbing away on their cell phone has the time to engage with a customer that looks lost finding an item. When a customer is ignored or bypassed in favor of a phone conversation that will make them upset. Sales associates are prohibited from carrying or using a cell phone while on the clock at Home Depot. That's company policy.

What the policy is for school or public buses, I don't know but if there is a policy and you see an employee breaking it, you should report it. Even if you don't know if there is a policy, you should report it out of concern for the safety of the passengers.