Mobile phones and driving safety

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This Manhattan driver is juggling two phones at once
This Manhattan driver is juggling two phones at once

It has been argued that the distraction caused by using mobile phones while driving is responsible for many road traffic accidents. Several studies have shown that motorists have a much higher risk of collisions and losing control of the vehicle while talking on the mobile telephone simultaneously with driving, even when using "hands-free" systems.

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported that in 2005 about 10% of all vehicles on the road at any given daylight hour were using a cell phone, up from about 8% the previous year.[1].

Several studies carried out at the Accident Research Unit at the University of Nottingham have warned of the dangers posed by driving whilst talking on a mobile phone.[2] As these studies deal with the effect of increased attentional load on driving performance, they also apply to hands-free phones, which are considered by some countries to be safe. The major problem is that the person with whom the driver is conversing cannot see the traffic situation and therefore does not regulate their level of conversation to allow the driver to concentrate when, say, approaching a junction.[3]

Research indicates that using a cell phone while driving is as dangerous as driving while intoxicated and cell phone use while driving is far more prevalent than drunk-driving[4] Talking and driving at the same time lowers the driver's reflexes, rendering them unable to avoid other drivers.

A study carried out by the University of Utah found that driving while using a mobile phone is "at least as dangerous as driving while over the legal alcohol limit". They also found that hands-free devices do not reduce the distraction caused by talking on a mobile phone.[5][6] According to a study published in the British Medical Journal and paid for by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, there was only a slight safety benefit from using a hands-free phone. The study showed that drivers who use cell phones, even hands-free models, are four times as likely to be involved in wrecks involving a serious injury than are drivers who do not use cell phones.[7]

One study of 699 Canadian drivers showed a rate of collision four times higher when using a mobile phone than when a mobile phone was not being used.[8] A study in The New England Journal of Medicine reports that drivers who used mobile phones while driving were four times more likely to crash than those who don't, a rate equal to that for drunken driving at the 0.01 g/dL blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level.[citation needed]

An experiment conducted by the American television show MythBusters concluded that use of mobile phones while driving poses the same risk as someone operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.[citation needed]

Contents

[edit] Legislation

Accidents involving a driver being distracted by talking on a mobile phone have begun to be prosecuted as negligence similar to driving while intoxicated.

At least 29 countries restrict or prohibit mobile phone use while driving:

  • Israel, Japan, Portugal and Singapore all prohibit mobile phone use while driving.
  • Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Italy, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the Philippines, Romania, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom prohibit the use of hand-held cell phones while driving.
  • Drivers in the Czech Republic and France may use cell phones but can be fined if they are involved in crashes while using such a device.[At least 25 countries restrict or prohibit cell and other wireless technology: Israel, Japan, Portugal and Singapore all prohibit mobile phone use while driving. Australia, Brazil, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, the Philippines, Romania, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates prohibit the use of hand-held cell phones while driving. Drivers in the Czech Republic, France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom may use cell phones but can be fined if they are involved in crashes while using such a phone.[At least 25 countries restrict or prohibit cell and other wireless technology: Israel, Japan, Portugal and Singapore all prohibit mobile phone use while driving. Australia, Brazil, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, the Philippines, Romania, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates prohibit the use of hand-held cell phones while driving. Drivers in the Czech Republic, France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom may use cell phones but can be fined if they are involved in crashes while using such a phone. [1]

Legislation to restrict cell phone use has been proposed in 40 states in the US; California, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and Washington, DC have passed such a law.[1] The state of Arkansas is voting on passing a law that prohibits talking on a cell phone while driving. The voting will take place in the last week of January 2007.[citation needed] In the United States, such laws were first passed by individual cities and towns, until state legislatures began to pass similar laws. The first American town to pass such a law was Marlboro Township, New Jersey.

In the United Kingdom, from 27 February 2007, motorists who are caught using a hand-held mobile phone while driving will have three penalty points added to their licence and face a maximum fine of £60.[9] This increase has been introduced to try to stem the increase in drivers ignoring the law.[10]

In Canada, the province of Newfoundland and Labrador it is illegal to use a hand-held cell phone while driving, but there is currently no laws on this subject in the rest of Canada.

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Driver Cell Phone Use in 2005 ─ Overall Results
  2. ^ "Driven to distraction", APA Online.
  3. ^ David Crundall, Manpreet Bains, Peter Chapman, Geoffrey Underwood (in press). "Regulating conversation during driving: a problem for mobile telephones?". Transportation Research. 
  4. ^ Driving While on Cell Phone Worse Than Driving While Drunk
  5. ^ "Mobiles 'risky as drink-driving'", BBC News, 29 June 2006.
  6. ^ Fox, Maggie. "Cellphone talkers as bad as drunk drivers: study", Reuters UK, 29 June 2006.
  7. ^ Vallese, Julie. "Study: Drivers on cells more likely to crash", CNN, 12 July 2006. Retrieved on July 12, 2006.
  8. ^ "Association between Cellular-Telephone Calls and Motor Vehicle Collisions", New England Journal of Medicine, 13 February 1997.
  9. ^ Drivers face new phone penalties
  10. ^ Careless talk

[edit] Other sources

  • Sundeem, M. Cell Phones and Highway Safety: 2002 State Legislatures Update. Denver, CO: National Council of State Legislatures, 2003.
  • Connelly, J. Cellular phones can distract you to death. Seattle Post-Intelligencer, July 16, 2003.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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