[Shrug] Well, that’s true. The fact is, I don’t like the idea of calling anyone while driving (much less text-messaging!). Given the choice I prefer to keep my mind on the road. And when I would rather driver there is nothing so obviously distracting than a verbally-ensnaring non-driving caller who keeps me on the line. Yes, given the choice I prefer short calls or none at all. (In OR out.)
I recently encountered a difficulty (before I got the headset) because of a lawyer I keep in communication with. I live in Los Angeles County and drove, on business for him, to a court building in Orange County, some 25 miles from home. As luck would have it, the earpiece of my phone was dirty (I’ve since removed and cleaned it) and he practically had to shout into his phone to get me to hear. And poor as this communication was–and I agree, potentially dangerous, since I was driving on the freeway at the time–it was worse still in Orange County, when I was not driving; I don’t know how mnuch of the poor transmission I could ascribe to the dirty part of the phone and how much to the frame of the court building.
I also discussed this with a younger relative (my nephew, himself an experienced driver). He doesn’t care for using the cell phone in the car either, but he suggested to me that there are people who can’t drive and talk at the same time (attention span). In any case, with those studies their comprehensiveness would be a key point since they should properly include a wide array of drivers and cell-phone users.
This cite is confusing. First it appears to statistically state there is an increased risk of accident while using the phone itself versus handsfree, then goes on to summarize that it makes no difference whether one uses the phone or the handset.
Perhaps someone can explain how a ratio of 3.8, 1.8 to 8.0 P<0.001 is equal to 4.9, 1.6 to 15.0 P=0.003, it’s been some time since I studied statistics.
And in the summary, it seems to state that the subjects of the study were not necessarily using the phones at the time of the crash, only within 10 minutes or up to one week prior to the crash.
While I don’t debate that using a phone does increase the likelihood of the crash, it would appear that this study casts a wide enough net that they could have come up with any conclusion they wanted.
No it isn’t. This is the kicker:
They presumably studied each driver’s cell phone use during the prior week to determine whether each driver habitually used his/her phone while driving.
I can’t explain why 3.8 and 4.9 are statistically equivalent.
Will you allow that attention span can figure in it? Some people, as I mentioned, “cannot talk and drive at the same time” ("cf. crude quote about Gerald Ford) while others handle such “multitasking” deftly. That’s why I suggested a wide array of test subjects…
Yes, it is. I did not speak to whether or not using a phone statistically resulted in more crashes. I spoke to the seemingly unclear statements about whether or not a difference in handsfree versus holding the phone to your ear existed in the likelihood of a crash. I think the general consensus here is that using a phone is more likely to result in a crash, but the only study cited is unclear (to me) whether handsfree vs not handsfree (and OP’s question) are similarly risky.
And yet did not indicate (at least in the summaries) whether or not anyone was actually on the phone when crashes occurred, simply that they were on within 10 minutes prior. What about the guy that never leaves his neighborhood?
It’s kind of like saying x% of all accidents happen within 1 mile of your house, without saying x% of driving that actually occurred within 1 mile of your house.
Perhaps someone can. Perhaps this is the root of my confusion.
eta: upon review it looks like OP didn’t ask that… so clearly I’m hallucinating… but still
I’ll allow that you yourself may be less distracted by a phone conversation than others, although I’m highly dubious- but it doesn’t mean you’re not distracted at all.
I’ll be honest- in complete denial of the facts, I use my cellphone while driving, sans earpiece. I know my phone (and contact list) well enough to make or answer a call without ever having to look at the phone; I, personally, find using a headset far more distracting. However, if a similar law is passed here, I’ll cease using my phone while driving entirely, and not complain at all.