Utility Employer Curbs Distracted Driving

Contract Callers, Inc. (CCI), a field services outsourcing company for utilities, will deploy more than 400 "smartphone safes" to reduce the possibility of distracted driving.

Drivers are required to lock personal and business cell phones inside the safe when the vehicle is in motion. If the phone rings, the driver must park the vehicle before he or she can open the safe and use the phone.

"Cell phones are a major concern for anyone that manages a fleet of drivers who are constantly tempted by phone calls, text messages, or apps," said Dennis McCabe, CCI's director of operations and fleet services, in a statement. "We operate in multiple states and have implemented a strict cell phone policy with zero tolerance, but enforcing our policy and complying with each state's requirements used to be extremely difficult and costly."

CCI's fleet safety managers will distribute the smartphone safes to meter service technicians in Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas.