# Why (in your opinion) are people still talking on cellphones while driving? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 22, 2010, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013 "2010-10-22T15:30:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![RedWood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f08c70/32.png) [@RedWood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedWood)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/101 "2010-10-25T04:43:39Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > I voted “other” in the poll because I don’t drive and talk on the phone. I think it’s dangerous ..\ what you said! If I have a passenger, I ask them to answer the phone. If not… into the voice jail it goes! I’ll pick up when I’m not driving. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/102 "2010-10-25T05:18:05Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > This this this this this! I have yelled at the TV before “watch the road, you moron!” God it makes me twitch. Sales people who are trained in the importance of making eye contact while talking are especially bad about this. My former boss was driving a group of us to lunch one time and I was sitting in the back seat. _He would turn half around and look over his shoulder while talking to me! While driving!_ ---
**Author:** ![be\_bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a5b964/32.png) [@be\_bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/be_bright)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/103 "2010-10-25T06:11:56Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > And so some people shouldn’t drive while talking to a passenger? Nope, some people shouldn’t. The worst accident my dad’s ever been in was caused by a guy talking to – and facing – his friend in the passenger seat. It happened at a major intersection; Accident Guy hit my dad’s side (probably going around the street’s speed limit of 45mph) and totaled my dad’s car. My sister, who was probably around 8 at the time, was in the passenger seat! She, thankfully, was unscratched, but my dad was left with some nasty bruises and cuts. Some people generally drive just fine whilst conversing with a passenger. Others do not. ---
**Author:** ![Otara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a88e4f/32.png) [@Otara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otara)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/104 "2010-10-25T08:01:51Z")
It interesting to see how many of the arguments here directly replicate drunk driving excuses. Ie I can drive better drunk than most people sober, I know when Im effected and when Im not, etc etc. Otara ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/105 "2010-10-25T08:10:52Z")
Exactly. The primary reason people do it is because they think they’re special and they know what they’re doing, and they know they’re perfectly safe. They’re exactly the same as every drunk who thinks they’re they’re just fine to drive. The people who say they drive perfectly and without any impairment while yapping on a cell phone are exactly the same ones who weave like drunks and take 30 seconds to notice the light has changed. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/106 "2010-10-25T12:04:50Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > The primary reason people do it is because they think they’re special and they know what they’re doing, and they know they’re perfectly safe. And each time they talk on the phone without getting in an accident reinforces their belief. Human beings are notoriously bad at risk assessment—at gauging how dangerous something is when it only sometimes leads to trouble. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/107 "2010-10-25T12:12:18Z")
I won’t initiate a call when I’m driving, but I might answer if it rings. I get very few calls, and no calls that are just “How are you, what are you up to?” If someone’s calling, it’s for a reason. That said, I never answer if I’m in traffic, and I’m rarely in traffic. If I’m on the road, it’s usually a country blacktop with no other vehicles in sight. I wouldn’t answer if I’m on the interstate or navigating a busy parking lot. I think a lot of the problem is that some folks just can’t let a call go unanswered. “Someone wants to talk to me!” ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/108 "2010-10-25T13:47:54Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > . . . > > Some are just stupid also. Mr. Roadshow ran a column about people who thought the California law didn’t apply to them if they held the phone away from their ears. 😕. . . . As of June 10, 2010 pursuant to Washington state law, “[a] person operating a motor vehicle while \*\*h\*\*\*\*olding a wireless communication device to his or her ear \*\*is guilty of a traffic infraction.” RCW 46.61.667 as amended by SSB 6345. According to press reports, if you set your phone to “speaker” and hold it in front of your mouth, you’re not in violation. So, not sure about California, but that’s not a stupid way to view the law in Washington. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/109 "2010-10-25T16:14:56Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > \ > > That said, I never answer if I’m in traffic, and I’m rarely in traffic. If I’m on the road, it’s usually a country blacktop with no other vehicles in sight. I wouldn’t answer if I’m on the interstate or navigating a busy parking lot.\ I see people talking on their cellphones while trying to make a left turn at a busy intersection without a turn arrow - that situation stresses me out _without_ adding a conversation into the mix. I have a feeling that if just driving without talking on a phone isn’t stressing or scaring you, you aren’t taking it seriously enough. People get KILLED driving, you know! ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/110 "2010-10-25T16:43:54Z")
I didn’t read the entire thread and can only speak for myself, but I talk on my cell phone while driving, a lot. I have a hands-free set-up in my car that broadcasts the caller’s voice through my car’s speakers, and have the microphone mounted at the left of the windshield, so I don’t hold the phone. However, I don’t even have to think twice if asked if it impairs my driving. Of course it does. I am definitely not paying as much attention to the road and my surroundings when I’m on a call. 99% of my phone calls are with clients, vendors, or physicians, each of which lasts, on average, 3 minutes. My challenge is I usually take a succession of calls, one right after the other, so it is conceivable for me to be on the phone 75% of the total time I’m behind the wheel, which is not good. I have an Answer / Hangup toggle switch in my steering wheel, so I’m not fiddling around when I have to take a call, but all the convenience in the world does not remove the feeling of distraction I have when I’m speaking, and don’t let anyone fool you, you really can’t compensate for the reduced concentration. I know. I’ve tried. I really don’t like taking phone calls while driving and, at times, my exasperation/impatience is noticed on the call because of it, especially if it goes on for longer than 5 minutes. Do I think I’m better able to handle a phone call in the car than anyone else? No way. The thought of having an accident while on the road occurs to me almost every time my phone rings. Knowing this, will I use my phone less often than I do now while driving? It’s doubtful, and I don’t feel good about that. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/111 "2010-10-25T16:47:17Z")
> [@Onomatopoeia](#): > > I didn’t read the entire thread and can only speak for myself, but I talk on my cell phone while driving, a lot. I have a hands-free set-up in my car that broadcasts the caller’s voice through my car’s speakers, and have the microphone mounted at the left of the windshield, so I don’t hold the phone. However, I don’t even have to think twice if asked if it impairs my driving. Of course it does. I am definitely not paying as much attention to the road and my surroundings when I’m on a call. > > 99% of my phone calls are with clients, vendors, or physicians, each of which lasts, on average, 3 minutes. My challenge is I usually take a succession of calls, one right after the other, so it is conceivable for me to be on the phone 75% of the total time I’m behind the wheel, which is not good. > > I have an Answer / Hangup toggle switch in my steering wheel, so I’m not fiddling around when I have to take a call, but all the convenience in the world does not remove the feeling of distraction I have when I’m speaking, and don’t let anyone fool you, you really can’t compensate for the reduced concentration. I know. I’ve tried. > > I really don’t like taking phone calls while driving and, at times, my exasperation/impatience is noticed on the call because of it, especially if it goes on for longer than 5 minutes. > > Do I think I’m better able to handle a phone call in the car than anyone else? No way. The thought of having an accident while on the road occurs to me almost every time my phone rings. Knowing this, will I use my phone less often than I do now while driving? It’s doubtful, and I don’t feel good about that. Thanks for an honest answer. At first I thought you were going to give the “I can handle it fine” speech, but you didn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/112 "2010-10-25T16:50:28Z")
> [@Onomatopoeia](#): > > Do I think I’m better able to handle a phone call in the car than anyone else? No way. The thought of having an accident while on the road occurs to me almost every time my phone rings. Knowing this, will I use my phone less often than I do now while driving? It’s doubtful, and I don’t feel good about that. Don’t think of it just as “having an accident”-think of it as “threatening the lives of others.” ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/113 "2010-10-25T18:16:43Z")
> [@be\_bright](#): > > Nope, some people shouldn’t. > > The worst accident my dad’s ever been in was caused by a guy talking to – and facing – his friend in the passenger seat. It happened at a major intersection; Accident Guy hit my dad’s side (probably going around the street’s speed limit of 45mph) and totaled my dad’s car. > My sister, who was probably around 8 at the time, was in the passenger seat! She, thankfully, was unscratched, but my dad was left with some nasty bruises and cuts. > > Some people generally drive just fine whilst conversing with a passenger. Others do not. Doesn’t this just prove that some people are better at it than others? Some people are overly distracted just talking to a passenger. Some people can talk and drive just fine. Can the same be true for cell phone talking? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/114 "2010-10-25T18:52:03Z")
The studies say no. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/115 "2010-10-25T19:18:44Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > Doesn’t this just prove that some people are better at it than others? Some people are overly distracted just talking to a passenger. Some people can talk and drive just fine. Can the same be true for cell phone talking? It’s not the same, at least for me it’s not, and I suspect for others. My concentration doesn’t abate noticeably when I’m speaking with someone in the passenger seat; it does when I’m on the phone, even with my hands-free system. I don’t know why, but it does. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/116 "2010-10-25T19:25:01Z")
The person in the passenger seat can see what you’re seeing, and the conversation can be adjusted accordingly. Studies show that talking on a cell phone calls for a greater degree of distraction on the part of the driver (and the hands-free devices make no difference). It’s a different level of multi-tasking. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/117 "2010-10-25T19:27:43Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Thanks for an honest answer. At first I thought you were going to give the “I can handle it fine” speech, but you didn’t. Yep, I’d only be fooling myself if I attempted to foist that crock. Edited. Truncated. Gratuitous. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/118 "2010-10-25T19:36:05Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > As of June 10, 2010 pursuant to Washington state law, “[a] person operating a > motor vehicle while \*\*h\*\*\*\*olding a wireless communication device to his or her ear \*\*is guilty of a traffic infraction.” RCW 46.61.667 as amended by SSB 6345. According to press reports, if you set your phone to “speaker” and hold it in front of your mouth, you’re not in violation. So, not sure about California, but that’s not a stupid way to view the law in Washington. Well, thanks. That’s one more legislature that is stupider than ours. The column had some comments from state police, and it is illegal here. I think holding it is the issue - as an unheld speakerphone, I think it is ok. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/119 "2010-10-25T19:37:33Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > Doesn’t this just prove that some people are better at it than others? Some people are overly distracted just talking to a passenger. Some people can talk and drive just fine. Can the same be true for cell phone talking? And we’re back to people’s lack of ability to self-judge. I _think_ based on other things that I’m better than average at going back and forth between two tasks (I don’t like the term “multi-tasking” since your attention is never on more than one task), but I don’t like the stressed, distracted feeling that comes with it, so I don’t do it. I could also be completely wrong about how good at it I am, but it’s moot for me cause I don’t do it anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013/120 "2010-10-25T19:42:03Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > The person in the passenger seat can see what you’re seeing, and the conversation can be adjusted accordingly. Studies show that talking on a cell phone calls for a greater degree of distraction on the part of the driver (and the hands-free devices make no difference). It’s a different level of multi-tasking. However, as I age I’ve noted that my wife talking to me while I am trying to make a difficult turn or get through heavy traffic changing lanes does distract me. However I’ve had 30 years practices tuning her out when necessary. 😃 People on the other end of a cellphone conversation don’t get the cues about when they should shut up, so it is even worse. When we get a population of 80-year-old cellphone talkers - we better start making cars out of rubber. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-in-your-opinion-are-people-still-talking-on-cellphones-while-driving/558013.md?page=7)