You talk, you drive, you lose

We’re just loving these reports coming out of India. Yesterday, it was their discovery of the phantom ringtone. Today, they’re talking about the dangers of talking and driving, even with a hands-free set. The first sentence of the article sets the tone: “Talking on hands-free car phones behind the wheel could be more risky than drink driving, a new study has found.” Translation issues aside, that’s not something cell-phone users want to hear.

We’re actually surprised not to have read this in an American outlet, since the University of Utah was involved in the study. It was also conducted by the University of Sydney and Britain’s Transport Research Laboratory.

“The research indicates that the combination of visual, auditory, mental and physical distractions caused by using mobile phones can cause a severe deterioration in the ability of the driver to react quickly to changing conditions,” the Daily Mail quoted Paul Purdy of yesinsurance.co.uk, as saying.

Indeed, the study claims that drivers using headsets have a 30 percent slower reaction time than a drunk driver, and 50 percent slower reaction time than a sober driver. We’re not sure we completely buy that, but it’s freakin’ frightening to even hear it.

So it appears that banning the use of handsets while driving is just one step. But does any government have the girth to ban all talking while driving? Probably not. The outcry would be voluminous. But you know what? If we can conduct further studies that confirm this, well, then something needs to be done. Drivers in the US are bad enough as it is.

[Hindustan Times]

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