93% of US people think they are above average drivers.
Unfortunately the large majority of people will be fooling themselves rather than being correct.
Otara
As I age I’ve noted that my wife whipping out her boobies while I am trying to make a difficult turn or get through heavy traffic changing lanes does distract me. It’s funny because it’s true. <Chris Griffin>Boobies! Hahahahahahahaha! </cg>
When Google perfects their car that drives itself we won’t have to worry about the elderly on cell phones.
But some people actually *are *above average drivers. Not everyone is of the same driving skill. I suspect that, indeed, there are people out there who can safely drive while talking on their cell phone. Whether or not you are able to judge your own skill is another matter all together.
There may be, but there are two issues. Firstly are they so much better that their risk rises to better than an average driver when using a mobile?
The research suggests no. Its the same argument as ‘Im a good driver so I can afford to drink more than the average person’.
Secondly, theres the issue my cite shows, that if you left it up to individual judgment, you’d end up with many people doing it when they shouldnt be. Which would mean the overall risk on the road would rise immensely because people are such poor judges of their driving ability.
Now if you’re arguing for people to do an objective test in order to prove that they are skilled enough drivers to be allowed to use mobiles Im all for it. I suspect the results would be good for more than a few laughs.
Otara
Fewer and fewer each year, lately.
and the strange thing is, because you do recognise the distraction it causes you, you are probably safer than the person who thinks it doesn’t affect them at all! You probably take all sorts of extra effort to mitigate the effects.
Most of the laws banning cell phone use and texting have been enacted in the same timeframe.
I feel the same way. Anything that takes my eyes off the road is a bad idea, which is why I am eternally grateful for buttons on my steering wheel. I turn the radio on right after I buckle my seat belt and flip through a CD or the radio and adjust the volume using the buttons beneath my fingers. I get very upset when people root around their cars while driving, or look at the radio buttons or change the temperature or air flow settings, because they are literally looking AWAY from the road. Texting is out of the question.
But my mind grows distracted when driving. If traffic is bad, that’s enough to maintain good attention. But otherwise I know part of my mind goes fuzzy. Talking on the phone with a hands-free earpiece snugly in my ear with, say my mom (who does 80% of the talking anyways) actually helps me focus better. I’m someone who studied through college with a little music on the background. Sure, different strokes for different folks, and often the people who have nearly gotten into accidents near me or with me often are on their phones, but never have I seen someone on a hands-free device in the situation, though there are plenty of stats showing it doesn’t matter. I do not pick up the phone while driving; I will initiate the conversation, earpiece in ear after the seatbelt buckling and such.
Anyways, I see far more slow/abrupt/poor drivers that are elderly than I do on cell phones. And far more that are dangerous because they’re yelling at their kids than are on cell phones.
ETA: I would love to take a driver’s test to lower insurance rates, etc. Research has shown that the elderly get into the 2nd most accidents, after teenagers.
Do you ever speed? Cut across lanes at the last minute when you realize that you’re about to miss your exit? Reach in the back seat to grab a dropped sippy cup? Fumble on the floor to pick up your directions that fell?
All of these things are potential accidents, and you and other posters can climb up on a high horse and pretend like you always keep 2 hands on the wheel and check your mirrors every 7 seconds, but I’m not buying it. Everyone makes compromises in the name of comfort and convenience, otherwise you’d see people pulling over to flip through radio stations or change CDs.
I really don’t think the conversation here should be, “Are people good at talking while driving,” but rather, “Are people good at risk assessment when it comes to cell phones.” I know that talking on the phone distracts me, and I adjust accordingly. Same way I adjust my driving when I need to reach in the back seat to get a teddy bear or figure out how to get the defroster going in a rental car. I wait for an appropriate time, I slow down, I pull over, and/or I cease the activity altogether depending on the circumstances. Sometimes I feel perfectly safe talking for extended periods, other times I won’t even reach down to turn off the ringer.
But steronz, you say, you’re just overestimating your abilities. You’re a danger! Perhaps. But by sharing the road with me for the last umpteen years you’ve been tacitly tolerating my decision making when it comes to when and how I choose to handle my distractions. Why the sudden change of heart?
I took a defensive driving course (well, a couple–one through work) and it did lower my insurance. My kids took an AAA-sponsored defensive driving course that was hands-on, and it lowered their insurance (i.e., my insurance) a LOT, which really helped since they were boys. Also, it worked. They had no wrecks.
I took the Triple A defensive driving course as well, but it was all classroom; one long, long Saturday. It did lower my insurance premium though, which is the main reason I took it.
Clarified where I live
I took a defensive driving course, but cell phones were not discussed, for there were no such things in those days. Radio phones were uncommon, so it just wasn’t an issue.
Huh, I actually didn’t know these existed after driver’s ed for teenagers. I’ll look and see if my AAA office offers them.
Because they haven’t been killed or seriously injured in an accident. Yet.
Are you talking about a cell phone held in the hand or one with a hands-free kit? The former has obvious problems; the latter should be no more dangerous than talking to a passenger, though I always pull over or ask the caller to ring back later.
^^^Also hasn’t read the thread.
My local CAA (AAA to you guys) offers driving courses to everyone; I’d be surprised if yours doesn’t, lindsay.
In my jurisdictions cops above town level always work in pairs and if you see a town cop alone, he’s not on wheels. If they’re in a car, the copilot handles the communications; if they’re on bikes, they move to the side of the road to talk to each other or call HQ.
In Spain the code for “I can’t talk now” is to take the call and hang up without talking, which I’ll do if traffic conditions allow for it (flip phone open, hit big button, flip closed). But usually if I get a call while driving I’ll just ignore it; on those times when I was expecting a call and got it while driving I’ve stopped on the side of the road to do so. I refuse to get a hands-free because I know some people who’d feel free to call me at any time if they knew I had one, whereas now they avoid calling me when they know I’ll be driving or they just send a “missed call”.
Last time it was on the side of the highway and someone reported it to the cops, who very sternly informed me that you’re not supposed to stop there unless you have an emergency; when the head cop asked whether I thought the call was important enough to lose 3 points over it and I answered “if it gets me a 2-year contract after 15 months off work, and since my points are intact, yes - sorry to have caused a disturbance, but yes”, he grunted and let me go with a reprimand. If my piggybank hadn’t been as empty as it was, I wouldn’t have taken it.
Oh, and my idea of “traffic conditions allow me to flip the phone open, hit the button and close it” are along the lines of “I’m on a three-lane highway in a location where the speed limit is the standard for that kind of road,” (ie 120km/h; if you’re on a stretch of highway and the speed limit is 40km/h, I want you to be focused on driving with every sense you own and an extra one borrowed from the bank) “there is no incoming traffic” (gas stations, exits) “and the weather is fine”. I’m on the paranoid side when it comes to cellphones on cars, but given how many cellphone-talkers (including some on hands-free) I’ve seen weaving from lane to lane, I’d rather be.