Sally walked out the front door, talking on the phone to a friend. She got in her car, did a quick check behind her to see if anybody was there, and got on her way. She was already late for the party, so she started driving a little faster. Her friend was talking about something, but she began to tune her out when she heard her favorite song on the radio. She turned up the volume and started singing along. Her friend was getting upset, so Sally turned off the radio, but then got a text message. She told her friend "hold on a sec" and checked the message. Another friend wanted to know if she was coming to pick her up or not. So Sally texted her back, taking little quick glances to watch the road, telling her she was on her way.
Sally got back on the phone, but then her purse fell over as she rounded a corner! She had to pick the stuff up or it would roll onto the driver's side and get stuck. "As long as I keep my eyes above the level of the dashboard, I'll be fine," she thought. "But, oh no! My chap stick is rolling away!" She peeked down to find it, and sideswiped a car in the oncoming lane of traffic.
Can you count how many things Sally did that distracted her from the task of driving? Of course, but how often do we practice it ourselves?
Sally got back on the phone, but then her purse fell over as she rounded a corner! She had to pick the stuff up or it would roll onto the driver's side and get stuck. "As long as I keep my eyes above the level of the dashboard, I'll be fine," she thought. "But, oh no! My chap stick is rolling away!" She peeked down to find it, and sideswiped a car in the oncoming lane of traffic.
- The greatest proportion of distracted drivers are in the under-20 age group.
- Drivers are four times more likely to be involved in a crash when talking on a cell phone. Texting while driving increases the crash risk eight times.
- When people talk on a phone and drive they develop a type of tunnel vision and do not notice cars and pedestrians in the outer limits of their sight.
- Both handheld and hands-free devices contribute to the same level of cognitive distraction (awareness, judgment and perception).
- In one simulator study comparing cell phone users and alcohol-impaired drivers, cell phone users had slower reaction times than drivers with a .08 BAC (pdf).
Studies have been conducted and statistics compiled by multiple organizations about the risks of distracted driving. Many have come to similar conclusions. A few sources are listed below:
