# Driving while on the Cell Phone **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 3, 2009, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782 "2009-07-03T02:55:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2009, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/61 "2009-07-04T20:25:41Z")
From an older thread (bolding added). > [@Is cell phone use in cars really dangerous?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-cell-phone-use-in-cars-really-dangerous/343855/46): > > Talking on the cellphone changes the priority of your awareness - the road is no longer number one. There’s a term pilot’s use: **situational awareness**. It means being aware of your surroundings, being aware of potential hazards, and being aware of where your attention and focus lie. > > If you don’t see a marked difference between where your attention lies when you’re talking on the phone and when you’re not, I’d posit that another contributer is spot on when he says that those who think a cell phone adds no danger are probably inattentive drivers to begin with. > > Consider this: you have one primary awareness channel and many peripheral channels. When you talk on the phone, your primary awareness channel becomes your cell phone conversation. Your monitoring of the awareness of your surroundings becomes peripheral. Driving is no longer your number one task. > > Is this true of eating? No. Other than the self-imposed limitations of maneuvering with a lapful of french fries, or attempting to turn the wheel with Whopper juice dripping down your arm, the act of eating does not change your primary awareness. The same can be said of listening to the radio or conversing with a passenger - both are passive tasks that do not require focus. Putting on makeup, reading while driving, playing with the NAV unit, or even watching a DVD(!) - these tasks all change your primary focus, thereby making you a less attentive driver and reducing your reaction time - something you need at 100%, especially if you’re driving something massive like a big SUV. I’ll add that cell phone use directs your attention INSIDE YOUR HEAD, unlike talking to a passenger or listening to the radio. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2009, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/62 "2009-07-04T20:45:49Z")
I used to drive across town following my boss . I could tell when he answered the phone. I thought if I were a cop, I would pull him over for suspicion of drunk driving. His speed was erratic and he wandered around the lane badly. He of course told me answering the phone had no effect on his driving. I walk my dogs across a 4 lane highway every day. I have to be careful because people on cell phones frequently go through the lights. I watch for them. I can see the difference in how they drive. It is no fallacy. ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2009, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/63 "2009-07-04T21:01:15Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Whenever I talk on a cell phone, after I end the conversation I have little or no memory of the last X miles I’ve driven. I’ve done this. I once drove all the way home from work on the phone and had not a single memory of my trip. This was on a highway, going in excess of 60, 65 mph. Very worrisome. > [@Polerius](#): > > If talking on the cell phone while driving is like driving while intoxicated, like some have said in this thread, why haven’t the number of car accidents skyrocketed between, say, 1980 and today, when hundreds of millions of people have cellphones, and millions per day drive while talking on their phone? As has been noted, you can drop your phone or yell “shut up!” into your bluetooth if you’re in a hairy situation while talking and driving but you can’t shut off intoxication. What would be the statistic that would be really telling, but is never aggregated is how many near-misses there have been since there’s been such a wide number of people talking on phones. That number has surely skyrocketed. > [@rowrrbazzle](#): > > I’ll add that cell phone use directs your attention INSIDE YOUR HEAD, unlike talking to a passenger or listening to the radio. This sounds right to me. Also, I don’t think that the issue is that it engages the _language_ center of the brain as much as it competes for the attention of the _information processing_ center of the brain. The “bandwidth” (for lack of a better term) that used to be dedicated to scanning the road, the minor steering checks, picking up on minor auditory cues, checking mirrors regularly (especially on highways) is now being shared by the phone call. Something is going to get short shrift. ---
**Author:** ![Animastryfe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8797f3/32.png) [@Animastryfe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Animastryfe)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2009, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/64 "2009-07-04T23:18:43Z")
> [@rowrrbazzle](#): > > From an older thread (bolding added). > > I’ll add that cell phone use directs your attention INSIDE YOUR HEAD, unlike talking to a passenger or listening to the radio. I don’t understand why talking to a passenger would necessarily be better than talking on a phone (with a headset). Assuming everything else is equal other than the person one is talking to is setting in the car, why would talking on the phone be so much worse? ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2009, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/65 "2009-07-04T23:52:15Z")
> [@Polerius](#): > > Yeah sure… You have millions of people added to the road that are effectively “drunk drivers” and the result will be only a “\*moderate \*increase in distraction related crashes”? :dubious: But as noted they’re only effectively drunk drivers for a very short amount of time. And although they may be impaired to an extent that is equivalent to drunk driving it doesn’t necessarily follow that they’re as likely to have a fatal crash as a drunk driver. The drunk driver may be more likely to be speeding for example (just pulling stuff out of my arse there, my main point is that you need a much more detailed set of statistics than what you’ve got to disprove that phone talkers suffer a similar amount of impairment as drunk drivers.) > [@Scotty Mo](#): > > I understand that it must have something to do with focus and concentration, but how does talking on the cellphone impair your driving capabilities. Logically speaking, it shouldn’t really have much of an effect, right? Something I’m missing here? I don’t have immediate cites for what’s to follow, it’s information that I’ve learned as a commercial pilot both in practical training and in theory, I can try to dig some up if you wish. Contrary to popular belief, human’s, including women, are not good at true multitasking. Give someone two things to do that requires constant attention and they cant do them both, one task will suffer. There are certain techniques that people use, sometimes consciously, sometimes not, that allow them to _appear_ to be multitasking. The two main techniques are to rapidly scan your attention and concentration from one task to the other and back, this is something that pilots do on a constant basis when flying in general and more specifically when flying on instruments, and the other is to get so good at at least one of the tasks that it becomes automatic and you can do it without concentrating on it. A good example is a musician playing guitar and singing a song. This is actually very difficult to do unless you know the song well. Typically when doing this the musician will be strumming chords with a simple rhythm while they sing (strumming task is automated) and then they play any lead breaks or fills in the gaps in the singing (scanning their attention from one complicated task, singing, to the other, playing a more complicated section on the guitar.) They can also play more complicated fills while they sing but they must know the music so well that their fingers and hands automatically do what’s required without requiring their attention, so that’s back to task automation. The act of driving a car can be automated, it’s not difficult and anyone who’s had a license for a little while doesn’t need to think about the physical act of driving. But the decision making and dealing with changes in the traffic situation can never be fully automated because it is never the same, there are always slightly different situations cropping up. So the driver, if they’re on their mobile, needs to scan their attention between their conversation and their driving. This is a skill that must be learned and consciously applied, most people aren’t that good at it without practice. Pilots must be specifically taught how to do this, not many of them are good at it immediately even though everyone does do it to some degree without realising it. Another point is that the more concentration one task requires, the more other tasks will get dumped from your scan. If you load someone up enough they will become completely focused on just one task and it may not be the task that is most important at the time! Even if you have developed the skill to be able to effectively multitask driving and talking on the phone, you still have slower reaction times because anytime you are concentrating on your conversation and something changes on the road around you, it takes time to perceive the change, realise you need to do something about it, then actually take action. Given that very few people allow enough space between themselves and the car in front to react to an emergency anyway, talking on the phone just makes it that much more likely that when something unexpected happens, they won’t take appropriate action in enough time to avoid a collision. Of course, until they’re in such a situation they will be blissfully unaware that they are any less attentive than they normally are. > [@Animastryfe](#): > > I don’t understand why talking to a passenger would necessarily be better than talking on a phone (with a headset). Assuming everything else is equal other than the person one is talking to is setting in the car, why would talking on the phone be so much worse? The answer to this stems from the same concepts as I’ve mentioned above. When you talk to someone who is in the car with you, they naturally allow the conversation to pause as the driving situation changes. Approach an intersection and you’ll generally find the passenger has stopped talking and is looking both ways for traffic, they are in sync with the driver and consciously or not, they will give the driver the breaks they need in the conversation so they can turn their attention to the road when required. The person on the other end of a phone doesn’t do this. They have no idea what’s happening around the driver and they may be saying the most important part of what they have to say while the driver is negotiating a complex intersection or lane change. The driver can either tell the other person to be quite for moment, or they can focus on driving and ask the other person to repeat what they said, or they can focus on the conversation to the detriment of their driving. What they cannot do is focus adequately on both the conversation and the driving at the same time. ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2009, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/66 "2009-07-04T23:54:26Z")
> [@Animastryfe](#): > > I don’t understand why talking to a passenger would necessarily be better than talking on a phone (with a headset). Assuming everything else is equal other than the person one is talking to is setting in the car, why would talking on the phone be so much worse? Because the person in the car with you is as aware of your surroundings as you are. They tend to shut the hell up when that 60 foot semi is about to smoosh you. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2009, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/67 "2009-07-04T23:58:17Z")
> [@Todderbob](#): > > They tend to shut the hell up when that 60 foot semi is about to smoosh you. You’ve put it much more succinctly than I :D. ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2009, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/68 "2009-07-05T00:00:42Z")
[quote=“1920s Style “Death Ray”, post:67, topic:501782”] You’ve put it much more succinctly than I :D. [/QUOTE] Just speaking from experience. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2009, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/69 "2009-07-05T00:29:29Z")
Another thing that I’ve “read somewhere” is that your brain accepts you talking to the person sitting next to you as real, but has to manufacture the person who’s not a physical presence. Some people, even youngsters who have grown up with really good equipment, tend to yell into the phone even when it’s not needed. We’re not programmed to talk to people we can’t see, so we compensate. As an aside, watch people who walk while they are talking on their phone. And give them a wide berth while you’re driving. Another thread. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2009, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/70 "2009-07-05T02:35:07Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > Another thing that I’ve “read somewhere” is that your brain accepts you talking to the person sitting next to you as real, but has to manufacture the person who’s not a physical presence. Some people, even youngsters who have grown up with really good equipment, tend to yell into the phone even when it’s not needed. > We’re not programmed to talk to people we can’t see, so we compensate. > As an aside, watch people who walk while they are talking on their phone. And give them a wide berth while you’re driving. > Another thread. I’ve read somewhere that phones have been around a long time and everyone knows the other person is real. What we didn’t notice a really long time ago is that all the people we thought were crazy because they walked around talking to themselves were actually time travellers talking on their cell phones to other time travelers.😃 ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2009, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/71 "2009-07-05T02:50:04Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I use my phone daily while driving. Never had a chargeable accident. IMHO, there are some folks who should not chew gum while driving, and there are others who can multitask. Statements like this remind of the quote in My Blue Heaven from Steve Martin: "Of course you have a sense of humor. Everyone thinks they do, even people who don’t. " In other words, I’d guess that everybody who drives while talking on their cell phones thinks they can do it safely. The reality is that it’s IMPOSSIBLE for it not to be a distraction at some point. Not all the time; but at some time for every driver it will be a distraction . For the record, I too talk on the phone while driving. I get pissed off when I’m behind a car that seems to be going slow for no reason, then when I pass them, they’re on the phone. I’d like to think I’m not one of those morons… but I probably am at some point or another. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2009, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/72 "2009-07-05T03:34:34Z")
> [@Lanzy](#): > > I’ve read somewhere that phones have been around a long time and everyone knows the other person is real. > > What we didn’t notice a really long time ago is that all the people we thought were crazy because they walked around talking to themselves were actually time travellers talking on their cell phones to other time travelers.😃 Right. I should’ve said “mind”. And a long time ago we noticed that people on the phone weren’t paying attention (to us). Ask any kid when is the best time to ask mom for something. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2009, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/73 "2009-07-05T04:13:22Z")
> [@tumbleddown](#): > > I’ve done this. I once drove all the way home from work on the phone and had not a single memory of my trip. This was on a highway, going in excess of 60, 65 mph. Very worrisome. I do this constantly. I used to have a 45-minute commute. I never remembered a minute of it unless something extraordinary happened, like a big traffic jam or seeing somebody else have a bad accident. And this was not using the cell phone. When I get a call, I turn off the radio. Maybe that helps me compensate. Otherwise I will have the radio on and I’ll be singing. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/74 "2009-07-06T00:03:17Z")
I started a related thread, if interested; [Walking while on the cell phone](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=11309587#post11309587). ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/75 "2009-07-06T18:25:53Z")
The point is, by the time you get to “driving zoned out” your judgment and ability to be aware is impaired to the point where you just \*think \*you’re driving OK. You’re in denial, but I understand as you really don’t know-(Same with many drivers who drink). Try this- get into your car, go on a long drive, start a long cell phone conversation (legally of course!). Have a bud get into the back seat and film you, and make notes. He is not to talk to you or make comments or alert you (unless it’s REALLY bad) You \*are \*impaired, trust me. They don’t call me DrDeth for nothing… ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/76 "2009-07-06T18:45:58Z")
“Have a bud”? What kind of impairment are you looking for? Kidding. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/77 "2009-07-06T18:46:58Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > “Have a bud”? What kind of impairment are you looking for? > Kidding. 😉 Ya got me there, dude.:smack: ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/78 "2009-07-21T14:16:12Z")
Way back at the dawn of the cellphone age: > [@](#): > > highway safety researchers estimated that cellphone use by drivers caused around 955 fatalities and 240,000 accidents over all in 2002. [U.S. Withheld Data on Risks of Distracted Driving](http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/21/technology/21distracted.html?hp) not surprisingly: > [@](#): > > The researchers also shelved a draft letter they had prepared for Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta to send, warning states that hands-free laws might not solve the problem. > > That letter said that hands-free headsets did not eliminate the serious accident risk. The reason: a cellphone conversation itself, not just holding the phone, takes drivers’ focus off the road, studies showed. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782/79 "2009-07-21T15:01:12Z")
I went down to Bakersfield this weekend to visit my kids and grandkids. I used my Blue Ant device, which is basically a hands-free speaker phone. It’s truly hands-free in all operations and worked perfectly. But I _was_ quite distracted even while just telling callers I’d call them back once I stopped. We need to accept that our cars are not our living rooms, nor are they our offices. Oh yeah, on my way home I had to do a lane change to avoid a guy merging from an on ramp while munching on a Subway sandwich. He actually had the wrapper fully open to protect his clothes and his face turned down to take a bite. His eyes widened in suprise (fear) when he finally saw me, promped by a guy in the back saying something to him and pointing. This happened on I5, a 70 mph, two lane freeway. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-while-on-the-cell-phone/501782.md?page=3)