The case for driverless cars

I live on a dead end country road that has no more than ten homes. Some traffic in the morning, some in the afternoon. Up at the county road, our exit to the world, a different story. It’s busy much of the day and heavy often during the day. Big trucks; semi tractor trailers hauling freight from point of loading or unloading, up to a major interstate. This piece of Ohio has grown up around us in the last thirty years.

This afternoon I waited to get out onto the county road, off to get Laura. I had to turn left. I watched at least one semi approaching from the right, and some pickup trucks and cars. From the left, a small black pickup truck, with another car behind. All the traffic from the right cleared and I looked back to the left.

The black pickup was creeping. Some impatient traffic was piling up behind. I looked right. Oncoming traffic a couple streets down. What to do about the black pickup at left, a thousand feet away and barely moving? I turned in front of him. I realized the driver’s head was on his chest. Was he dead? I looked into the cab as I passed.

You guessed it. Texting. Completely, totally obvious to the road around him. He was close to a stop on Akron Cleveland Road, impatient drivers behind who were not clear to pass, and him with unfinished texting to do. This was not the classic left hand holding phone at eye level, eyes darting occasionally to the road. This was total focus on phone held surreptitiously below steering wheel level.  So no one would notice?

As I drove on down the road, it came to me. This is why driverless cars are being built. These millennials are something else, aren't they.  

Missing the point, what?

No visible cell phone.