Drive a Car, Not a Cell Phone

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“When a driver ‘talks and drives’ they are not only putting themselves at risk, they are also putting everyone around them in a dangerous situation” (ComparisonMarket.com). A study conducted last year by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, had cameras placed inside one hundred cars and trucks to track drivers' activities before a dangerous event occurred. Research shows users of cell phones while driving caused far more crashes and near misses than non-users. These statistics do not change even if the hand held device becomes hands free by means of a blue tooth or speaker phone. Hands-free cell phones may allow the driver to keep both hands on the wheel however, devices such as headsets or voice activated dialing led to longer dialing times causing the same level of driver distraction. Even though a study released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety claims bans on handheld cell phones in many states seem to have had no impact on accident rates, drivers still should not use a hand held phone while driving in the car because car accidents associated with hand held phone use account for nearly three hundred deaths per year showing cell phone users are four times as likely to get into an automobile accident serious enough to cause injury. University of Utah psychologists have published a study which highlights drivers talking on handheld or hands-free cellular phones as being impaired on the same level as drunken drivers. In this study each of the tests subjects drove in a driving simulator four times; once each while completely undistracted, using a handheld device, using a hands-free device, and intoxicated with vodka and orange juice up to the legal limit of .08. The simulation had the participants following a ... ... middle of paper ... ...icleid=43812. Jaffe, Eric. "Driving While Texting: As Bad as Drunk Driving, Says Study." The Infrastucturist. The Infrastructurist, 05 Oct 2010. Web. 22 Nov 2010. http://www.infrastructurist.com/2010/10/05/driving-while-texting-as-bad-as-drunk-driving-says-study/ Langer, Gary. "Hands Off! Public Backs Ban on Hand-Held Cell Phones in Cars." abcnews. ABCNEWS Internet Ventures, 22 May 2010. Web. 20 Nov 2010. http://abcnews.go.com/sections/us/dailynews/poll_cellphone010522.html LeBeau, Phil. "Want to Stop Texting and Driving? Why Not Jam Cell Phones?" cnbc. CNBC, Inc, 30 Sep 2009. Web. 22 Nov 2010. http://www.cnbc.com/id/33090526/Want_to_Stop_Texting_and_Driving_Why_Not_Jam_Cell_Phones. Sedgwick, David. "Study Shows Banning Cell Phones In Cars Doesn't Work." AOL Autos. AOL Inc, 29 Jan 2010. Web. 20 Nov 2010. http://autos.aol.com/article/cell-phone-ban-study/.

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