Iowa blitz catches commercial drivers 'actively' watching videos behind the wheel

Between 12:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. on Sept. 30, the Jasper County Sheriff's Office and the Iowa State Patrol ran a distracted-driving enforcement operation on I-80 in Jasper County — and, according to the sheriff's office, the majority of the distracted-driving violations involved commercial motor vehicle operators watching videos on electronic devices mounted to their dashboards.

The 3.5-hour effort produced nine citations specifically for distracted driving, most of them issued to truck drivers actively watching video streams on dash-mounted devices while their trucks were moving. Officers also conducted three commercial motor vehicle inspections, placing one commercial vehicle out of service for safety violations, and issued 60 warnings for equipment violations and improper driving maneuvers.

"Operating an 80,000-pound fully loaded vehicle requires a driver's undivided focus. Seeing commercial operators watching videos behind the wheel of these massive vehicles is deeply concerning," said Jasper County Sheriff Brad M. Shutts, who urged truck drivers to put the videos away on Iowa roadways.