Texting while driving

[Garycw]

I've missed several exits just talking on the phone before.
Another dangerous habit is eating while driving. There used to be billboards about being the most dangerous lunch room.
Another BIG distraction are billboards themselves. The eye sores should be banned!

 

[Ed of all trades]

I talk on the phone all the time while driving, never had a problem. I will only text while i'm stopped at a light or stopped in a parking lot somewhere. I will not read a text while driving. I remember people talking about CB's and how they should not be allowed in cars or trucks, but that seems to have passed. Ed

 

[Streetcar]

Our state outlawed use of devices without hands free... still see lots of people (including cops) on the phones. I do my best to not touch it.

Studies have shown it is the discussion that is the distraction, not having a phone in your hand.

 

[kidr]

Well, I guess I'll have to confess. I had the habit of reading my emails on my blackberry as I was going to work. One early morning I was pulled over for swerving back and forth between the lines. Yep, I was reading my emails. The officer was going to give me a drunk driving test until I explained I was "preoccupied". He gave me a stern warning and I went on my merry way.

About 3 months later, I ran completely off a county road on my way to work, over corrected came back up on the road and slid sideways coming to a stop. Yep, reading my emails. That was my sign. I no longer touch my phone while I'm driving. I've proved to myself that I'm incapable of driving and reading at the same time. And I'm a really good driver......

Of course you are

 

[Bird]

Police seem to be the worst offenders of using a phone while driving, i see them all the time.

During my days in law enforcement, we had no phones; had to stop at a fire station or police station if we needed to use a phone.:laughing: But I've run high speed pursuits in a car with a manual transmission and having to talk on the radio with a hand held mic at the same time.

 

[Bird]

Studies have shown it is the discussion that is the distraction, not having a phone in your hand.

And where would we find those "studies"?

 

[Bird]

I came within a second of rear-ending a semi on the freeway. Busy talking with my sister at the time. I, at 81, still count myself a good driver but have had more "problems" inthe past 10 years than in all the rest of my driving history mostly due to inattentiveness. No accidents...knock wood.

I guess, compared to you, I'm still a "youngster" at 76. However, I KNOW I'm not the driver I was 30-40 years ago. In fact, I used to be in charge of the department's safety section, got a 20 consecutive year safe driving award, etc. My last accident was about 12 years ago on a slight downslope approaching a stop sign in a light rain. The car ahead of me stopped and I stopped, but the 26 year old young lady behind me didn't. She knocked me far enough forward that I would have hit the car in front of me, if it hadn't taken off when it did. Fortunately, she had insurance that paid for the repairs.

 

[MF283]

My daughter had an annoying habit of texting me when she knows i just got off work & have an hour drive home.
When i get home, she will ask if i stopped at the store to pickup whatever it was for dinner. After a dozen or so times, she finally took the 15 minute drive to get the items when needed, i wear glasses to read & blame sure can't see to drive with them on.
I have ringtones for certain folks that i will answer while driving with the speaker on the phone & keep it short & to the point while driving, at 58, i don't think my driving skills are what they used to be, no accident's though.

Ronnie

 

[kidr]

And where would we find those "studies"?

http://www.nsc.org/DistractedDrivingDocuments/The-Great-Multitasking-Lie-print.pdf

 

[check]

Until I bought my current F150 with which I can answer calls or make calls without taking my hands off the steering wheel, I just wouldn't use my cell phone at all when driving. Whether it was receiving or making a call, I just got out of traffic and stopped to use the cell phone.

Yep. I have that feature on my 2016 F150 with "Sync 3", and it is a pleasure to use. I especially enjoy the big screen on the dash, which displays in big letters who is calling, with very large accept and reject buttons that I just have to touch in order to answer the call. It works even better than using the steering wheel controls, because these new F150,s I have so many buttons on the steering wheel that you can get very distracted just trying to figure out which button to push. Even the cruise control buttons can distract you a surprising amount. But, no accidents so far!

 

[k0ua]

During my days in law enforcement, we had no phones; had to stop at a fire station or police station if we needed to use a phone.:laughing: But I've run high speed pursuits in a car with a manual transmission and having to talk on the radio with a hand held mic at the same time.

Bird, as a 2 way radio user, with 10's of thousands of miles driven while yapping on a radio with a handheld microphone and never having an accident while doing so, I think there is a difference in operating a 2 way radio with its speaker and microphone vs. using a phone in a car. I have had several close calls while trying to talk on a phone. I don't know if it is the intensity of the conversation or what it is, but I don't like to use a phone in a car while driving at all, unless I use the handsfree interface, but I have no problem at all using the 2 way radio in a car. Am I crazy? (dont answer that :laughing

 

[2LaneCruzer]

Texting and Driving Statistics

Texting while driving is a growing trend, and a national epidemic, quickly becoming one of the country痴 top killers. Drivers assume they can handle texting while driving and remain safe, but the numbers don稚 lie.

Texting While Driving Causes:

1. 1,600,000 accidents per year National Safety Council
2. 330,000 injuries per year Harvard Center for Risk Analysis Study
3. 11 teen deaths EVERY DAY Ins. Institute for Hwy Safety Fatality Facts
4. Nearly 25% of ALL car accidents

Texting While Driving Is:

1. About 6 times more likely to cause an accident than driving intoxicated
2. The same as driving after 4 beers National Hwy Transportation Safety Admin.
3. The number one driving distraction reported by teen drivers

Texting While Driving:

1. Makes you 23X more likely to crash National Hwy Transportation Safety Admin.
2. Is the same as driving blind for 5 seconds at a time VA. Tech Transportation Institute
3. Takes place by 800,000 drivers at any given time across the country
4. Slows your brake reaction speed by 18% HumanFactors & Ergonomics Society
5. Leads to a 400% increase with eyes off the road
Research Articles

Alleged Federal Coverup Of Data: 4�4 Not Found
Death By Text:Death by txt Numbers show SMS and driving don稚 mix | GPS Systems

Texting and Driving Statistics

 

[Redneck in training]

If I am not mistaken hands free phone function in cars was legislated in some if not all European countries years ago. There was a phone cradle mounted on the dash that integrated the phone with a radio (years before Bluetooth).
I can talk on a phone but have hard time to dial. So I don't do it. I can't do even simple multitasking while driving. My wife can talk, put make up on and slow down for cops selling ticket to speeders. All in the same time. I don't speed because I would see the cops when is too late to slow down. Women are definitely better at multitasking. Or they just think they are.

 

[oldballs]

Shoot, coming out of church last Sunday, some teenager was talking on the phone while walking down a narrow sidewalk. I had a notion to throw a block into him as he proceeded with no attention to other people walking in the opposite direction. Gimme that "Old time religion".

 

[kevin37b]

I often wonder how we would survive 30 yrs ago , no cell . What do you need to talk about 24|7 anyway ?

 

[Garycw]

I often wonder how we would survive 30 yrs ago , no cell . What do you need to talk about 24|7 anyway ?

I used to think it was pretty high tech to pull up and use pay phone without getting out of car.

 

[k0ua]

I used to think it was pretty high tech to pull up and use pay phone without getting out of car.

Payphone? What is a payphone? is that something new?

 

[Howling]

There are some generational issues going on with distracted driving.

The younger generation has grown up with cell phones, internet and continuous connectivity. Cell phones are just a constant part of life. They then learn and integrate other activities (driving, etc) around that core. This has lead to drivers that don't understand that driving should be the primary activity, not just one of many things.

Us older folk learned to drive without the distractions of cell phone or other electronics as the core skill then added on the other tasks, hopefully when safe to do so.

Few years ago saw a study on how people used cell phones in cars. The older generation would dial 3 digits, look up, dial 3 digits, look up, dial the last 4 digits. The younger generation would dial all 10 digits then look up, missing a much longer stretch of what is going on.

A few year ago I was driving thru center of town. Pedestrian stepped into crosswalk so I stopped. 2-3 seconds later I go hit from behind. Young guy busy lighting cigarette didn't notice car ahead of him had stopped. Many folk need to learn to not always multitask and pay attention to what they doing.