Cell Phone Drivers Are As Dangerous As Drunk Drivers
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Research shows that driving while talking on a cell phone is as bad as or maybe worse than driving drunk. If legislators really want to do something effective to reduce the carnage on our roadways, they should outlaw the use of cell phones while driving.
Research recently published by the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society demonstrates that cell phone drivers are as unsafe behind the wheel as a legally intoxicated driver.
According to Dr. Frank Drews, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Utah who worked on the study:
" Driving while talking on a cell phone is as bad as or maybe worse than driving drunk." Drews notes that alcohol was involved in 40 percent of the 42,000 annual U.S. traffic fatalities. Just like many people who have been drinking, the cellphone users did not believe themselves to be affected, the researchers found. The study found that cell phone drivers kill 2,600 victims per year and injury another 330,000.
Other research published by the society demonstrates that when young drivers use cell phones their reaction time is transformed into the equivalent of that of an 80 year old driver.
The implications of these studies seem obvious, as observed by Dr. Drews :
"If legislators really want to address driver distraction, then they should consider outlawing cell phone use while driving."