WARREN, Mich.

FOR RELEASE: November 1, 2001

General Motors' New Policy Drives Employees To Use Hands-Free Cellular Phone Technology

WARREN, Mich. - Beginning today, General Motors employees are expected to use hands-free cellular phone technology while driving in order to comply with the new "SenseAble driving" Employee Policy.

Announced in September, the new policy addresses the many distractions drivers face on a daily basis and encourages GM's more than 200,000 employees in North America to use hands-free technology when driving company vehicles or personal vehicles while on or conducting GM business. The policy covers both GM-owned and privately owned phones being used to conduct GM business.

Employees also are encouraged to exercise good judgment in managing distractions by monitoring driving conditions and avoiding unnecessary tasks.

"The health and safety of our employees is an overriding priority at GM," said William J. Kemp, Jr., executive director, Safety Communications. "Americans are spending nearly 500 million hours a week on the road. We want to make sure that our employees, their families and others on the nation's highways are spending that time in a safe manner."

The policy coincides with the state of New York's legislation, also effective today, banning the use of hand-held cell phones while driving.

Since the September announcement, GM has revved up the effort to equip employees using company-owned cellular phones with hands-free technology such as headsets and earpieces. U. S. employees driving company vehicles equipped with OnStar Personal Calling have been encouraged to activate and use this voice-activated system. OnStar, a wholly owned GM subsidiary, is the industry's leading provider of telematics services and currently has more than 1.7 million subscribers across the United States and Canada.

The new policy comes on the heels of the recently released study of the OnStar database. The study showed that out of 8.1 million embedded cell phone calls placed to OnStar advisors between 1996 and April 2001, only two crashes severe enough to deploy an air bag occurred while drivers were using the OnStar system. There is no evidence that the calls actively contributed to the crashes; in fact, an examination of underlying records indicated that there were other factors at play in both crashes.

The employee policy is part of GM's "SenseAble driving" program, launched in October 2000, that combines research, technology and education to address driver distraction. In March 2001, GM introduced the "SenseAble driving" education pilot program with the Michigan Secretary of State's office to educate drivers about the possible risks of distracted driving with brochures, posters and videos that are now being offered to vehicle registrars' offices nationwide.

For further information on the "SenseAble driving" program, including an interactive computer demonstration illustrating the importance of managing distractions, visit www.senseabledriving.com or www.gmability.com.

General Motors , the world's largest vehicle manufacturer, designs, builds and markets cars and trucks worldwide. In 2000, GM earned $5 billion on sales of $183.3 billion. It employs about 372,000 people globally.