Hundreds of studies have been conducted across the world and they all agree that the use of smartphones while driving is pervasive and dangerous. Texting and driving seems to be a significant problem, especially among younger drivers. Drivers using a mobile phone are less able to visually scan the road ahead and are slower to respond to hazards. Distracted driving is one of the leading causes of deaths and injuries on the road.

Distracted driving is dangerous

If you’re involved in a complex conversation that requires you to think and you need to concentrate on a difficult section of a road, both activities compete for your cognitive resources. You can’t do both well at one time and you need to prioritize one over the other. If you take your eyes off the road for even a few seconds you can easily hit a pedestrian or cyclist or a car that’s slowing down.

As any accident attorney can tell you, distracted driving can be extremely dangerous. If you’re involved in an accident, you might be looking for “attorneys near me”. A visit to the website of USAttorneys.com offers you the opportunity to find experienced attorneys in your area.

Hands-free phone calls are still dangerous

You may think that because you only make hands-free phone calls, you are unlikely to have an accident. You may have a false sense of security because even if this is legal, it may not be safe. Carnegie Mellon University study found that drivers in “dual task” situations caused frequent collisions.

Participants drove along a winding road while in a simulator and were attached to an fMRI scanner to record their brain activity. In one scenario, they had to complete a sentence comprehension task while driving. The researchers found that there was an increase in temporal lobe activity and a decrease in parietal lobe activity. The auditory task was obviously diverting attention away from the driving task.

Cell phone conversations are different to conversations with passengers

You may argue that having a phone conversation in the car is just like having a conversation with a passenger. The evidence suggests this isn’t the case. Passenger conversations differ from cell phone conversations because your passengers share awareness of the surrounding traffic.

The driving conditions also have a direct influence on the complexity of the conversation so this can mitigate the potential negative effects of a conversation on driving. If you are trying to enter a motorway from a slip road, a passenger is likely to keep quiet until you’re safely on the motorway.

You’re more likely to be found ‘at fault’ for an accident

It is illegal for you to talk on your cell phone while driving in many states, and if you are distracted and cause an accident, you are likely to be found ‘at fault’ by your insurance company.

If you’re speaking on a cell phone, someone could easily rear-end you because you’re going too slowly and it would be your fault. You could rear-end someone else due to not seeing their brake lights. If a victim of a car accident due to your negligence hires an attorney to pursue a lawsuit, you could be held liable for damages.

You put others at risk

Mobile phones continue to be the most significant cause of distraction on the roads. They are the reason there could be many distracted drivers on the road at any given time. Never using your cell phone when you’re behind the wheel, even when you have stopped at an intersection, will ensure that you never have an accident anyone can blame on the use of your cell phone.

(Visited 5 times, 1 visits today)