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Cell phones have forever changed our lives. Thanks to the cell phone, people can make a phone call from just about anywhere. Unfortunately, that convenience created distracted drivers.
When cell phones were first introduced, they actually aided motorists in emergency situations, such as an accident on the highway. The motorist could call for help on the scene of the accident. But that was before the number of cell phone owners surged to epic numbers.
Numerous studies find the same results over and over: drivers using cell phones are more likely to crash and cause injuries than drivers not talking on phones. Even when using a hands-free device, motorists are still likely to have an accident. The reason? Drivers pay more attention to their conversations than their driving.
When drivers are talking on the phone, their reaction times to situations are delayed. The few seconds a motorist uses to dial his or her phone is all the time it takes to rear-end another driver.
Using cell phones when driving does not just affect reaction times. Good driving behaviors suffer when motorists drive and talk. Unless drivers use hands-free devices, they are driving with one hand on the phone and one hand on the wheel. They will switch lanes without looking and without using a turn signal. Often they are unable to maintain the legal driving speed; they will quickly speed up or suddenly use their brakes.
Driving and cell phone usage should be avoided. If the phone call is that important or urgent, drivers should pull over in a safe area and then make the call.
Did you know? According to a study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, nearly 80 percent of all highway crashes and nearly 65 percent of all near creases involved some form of distracted driving within 3 seconds of the incident.
