Former GM international operations boss, Steve Kiefer, says he is making progress in his mission to end distracting driving.
Early in 2022, Kiefer left GM to focus full time on the Kiefer Foundation, launched by the former GM executive in 2016 to honor his son, Mitchel. Mitchel was killed shortly after graduating from high school in a car accident caused by a distracted driver. Now, Kiefer says that his foundation is making progress towards its goal of reducing and eventually eliminating distracted driving. Per a report from Automotive News, the foundation has helped to push distracted driving law reform across the U.S., with involvement in new “hands free” legislation efforts in nine states.
Michigan State Representative Mari Manoogian (D-Birmingham) has worked towards distracting driving law reform since taking office in 2019, and with help from representatives Mike Mueller (R-Linden) and Joe Bellino (R-Monroe) introduced three bills aimed at banning distracted driving. The bills passed the House last January, but were blocked from going to the floor for a vote in the Senate.
Nevertheless, Kiefer says he’s confident that the new distracted driving reform will pass early this year.
“Hopefully we’ll have a big celebration by spring next year,” he told Automotive News. “But more importantly, we’ll have these laws in place and deaths will drop next summer because of these laws. I’m sure of it.”
Kiefer has also drawn support from celebrities like pro football player Tom Brady and actor Mark Wahlberg, both of whom worked to promote the Kiefer Foundation’s “Just Drive” campaign. The foundation has also seen support from Lear Corp, Magna International, American Axle and Manufacturing Inc., and GM.
Back in 2017, the Kiefer Foundation worked with the state of Michigan to construct a new $600,000 battier on I-96 where Mitchel was killed. The foundation has raised nearly $2 million since launch, with funds used for awareness campaigns and education efforts across the U.S.
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Comments
Must be tough to lose a son in any circumstance, but especially in a car accident when you’re an auto executive. My condolences to Mr. Kiefer.
Ok, so please explain what these laws will be requiring
How about just using technology to stop the use of cell phones in moving vehicles (except in emergencies). Don’t tell me it can’t be done. Same goes for stopping impaired driving.
I understand about the cell phone issue. Tell me how having to access a menu on an OEM touch screen in order to change the settings on a basic vehicle function while driving is any less distracting.
Hey Steve, we have more than enough nagging nannying busybodies in this country, so take a deep breath and let it go.
Vehicle accidents are completely unavoidable in societies whee we whizz around in little metal boxes.
Sorry about your son, but spare us the crusade. Some of us can walk and chew gum at the same time. We don’t need more damn laws.
“Vehicle accidents are completely unavoidable…”???
Yes. Do you really think that 300 million people whizzing around in metal boxes will NEVER bump into each other?
OF COURSE accidents are going to happen.
There are 50 states and “distracted driving” means something different each one. How about some further research before posting a piece like this that says nothing. Is distracted driving a Tesla on autopilot?
I hate most of the car nannies, and my go to are fully analog older sports cars, BUT, ABS, stability control, automatic emergency braking, cross traffic warnings and other tech is saving lives. Now since there is tech to see where the driver is looking, it could easily be incorporated to see if they are focused on a phone, or anything else. Again I don’t like added tech, but most people have become too stupid for their own good and ours. PS I’ve seen drivers reading novels on open highway stretches. I cannot imagine what rationale they have.
That will never happen. So long as there are windows in a vehicle people will always be distracted at one point or another. And the more tech you put in a vehicle, the worse the driver becomes. Its not good to keep adding driving components that do things for you, all it does it churn out generational worse drivers. And if you really want to fix distracted driving, mandate all vehicles be manufactured with tech components that disables all use of cell phone activities within the vehicle except 911 calls.