Alex Fitzpatrick2013-03-25 14:54:13 UTCGoogle Glass fans excited about the prospect of using the technology while cruising about in their car might have a roadblock ahead: An extension of texting-while-driving laws to cover the yet-unreleased Glass device.
Gary G. Howell, a Republican member of the West Virginia legislature, has introduced a bill that would amend a state law forbidding texting-while-driving to also prohibit "using a wearable computer with head mounted display." That language is aimed pretty much right at Google Glass.
Howell's no Luddite — he told CNET's that he's a fan of Google Glass in general. However, he sees his bill as an "extension" of texting-while-driving laws aimed at protecting young new drivers and those around them.
"It is mostly the young that are the tech-savvy that try new things," he said. "They are also our most vulnerable and underskilled drivers. We heard of many crashes caused by texting and driving, most involving our youngest drivers."
While it's uncertain if Howell's bill will gain any traction in West Virginia, it's not hard to see other legislators around the country following his example. Texting while driving caused 16,141 deaths between 2002 and 2007, according to a 2010 study, numbers that prompted many states to outlaw the practice. Google Glass might be seen by lawmakers as just as dangerously distracting.
On the other hand, one can also foresee ways in which Google Glass or a technology like it might provide an "enhanced driving" experience which could boost, not reduce, automobile safety. Hypothetically, a Google Glass-powered GPS view could put navigation information in a location that's actually more convenient than the dashboard. Additionally, Google Glass is heavily voice-controlled, so perhaps the company could add a "driving mode" which would provide audio turn-by-turn directions without any potentially distracting visual elements.
Such predictions of driving-related future features are evidenced by Google's already well-known work towards revolutionizing the driving experience via driverless cars. Google's statement regarding the West Virginia bill also adds weight to this line of thought.
"We are putting a lot of thought into the design of Glass because new technologies always raise new issues," a Google spokesperson told Mashable. "We actually believe there is tremendous potential to improve safety on our roads and reduce accidents. As always, feedback is welcome."
Do you think wearing Google Glass while driving would be safe? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Image via Kimihiro Hoshino/AFP/Getty Images
Topics: Google, project glass, Google Glass, U.S., US & World if(window.pageChanged) window.omni({"channel":"us-world","content_type":"article","top_channel":"us-world","content_source_type":"Internal","content_source_name":"Internal","author_name":"Alex Fitzpatrick","age":"0","pub_day":25,"pub_month":3,"pub_year":2013,"pub_date":"03/25/2013","isPostView":true,"post_lead_type":"Default"}); metaData = {"link":[["canonical","http://mashable.com/2013/03/25/google-glass-driving/"],["image_src","http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzAzLzI1Lzc4L2dvb2dsZWdsYXNzLmI3MzhhLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTcyMHg3MjAjCmUJanBn/285390da/376/google-glass.jpg"]],"meta_property":[["og:url","http://mashable.com/2013/03/25/google-glass-driving/"],["og:title","Google Glass Could Be Subject to Texting-While-Driving Laws"],["og:type","article"],["og:site_name","Mashable"],["og:image","http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzAzLzI1Lzc4L2dvb2dsZWdsYXNzLmI3MzhhLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTcyMHg3MjAjCmUJanBn/285390da/376/google-glass.jpg"],["og:article:published_time","2013-03-25T14:54:13Z"],["og:article:modified_time","2013-03-25T14:54:24Z"]],"meta_name":[["description","At least one lawmaker wants to ban the use of Google Glass while driving well before the technology is even widely available to the public."],["keywords",["google","us","uncategorized","us-world","google-glass"]],["twitter:title","Google Glass Could Be Subject to Texting-While-Driving Laws"],["twitter:description","Google Glass fans excited about the prospect of using the technology while cruising about in their car might have a roadblock ahead: An extension of texting-while-driving laws to cover the yet-unrelea..."],["twitter:image","http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzAzLzI1Lzc4L2dvb2dsZWdsYXNzLmI3MzhhLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTU2MHg3NTAKZQlqcGc/afc6cd8e/376/google-glass.jpg"],["twitter:site","@mashable"],["twitter:url","http://mashable.com/2013/03/25/google-glass-driving/"],["twitter:creator","@mashable"],["twitter:card","photo"],["twitter:image:width","560"],["twitter:image:height","750"]]};
0 comments:
Post a Comment