Cell phone risk

Cell phone use while driving, whether handheld or hands-free, impairs a motorist to the same degree as 0.08 blood alcohol level.

That is according to Jennifer Smith, Executive Director of the United States based Distraction Advocate Network, who told The Grenada Advocate that this has been proven to be true in various studies and it is imperative that the Caribbean addresses the problem before it gets totally out of hand. She said that while persons recognise that cell phone use while driving is a problem, it has become an addictive behaviour making it difficult to get persons to break the habit.

“They think because they are looking at the window that they are seeing, but what is actually happening is that their brain cannot do two cognitively demanding tasks at one time, it cannot multitask in that manner and instead it is doing what is called task switching. It is going from one to the other and so it doesn’t matter where your hands are, it is where your head is,” she said.

Smith added that it is also important that persons understand that talking on the phone is a four times greater crash risk, but texting while driving carries an even greater risk and is suggested to be 23 times more dangerous. The distracted driver expert also noted that a recently released report suggested that teenage deaths in motor vehicle crashes are caused primarily by distracted driving rather than drunk driving.

“The fact is that you are essentially driving blind – your eyes are off the road, your hands are off the wheel and your mind is off the task of driving, so your car is basically on autopilot and you don’t even react to what you are seeing and that is why we are having so many accidents in the US – literally thousands every year,” she said.

The Executive Director also dismissed the argument that hands-free cell phone use was akin to having a passenger in the car. She contended that a passenger is a second set of eyes for the driver, and would be able to alert them if there is some danger ahead, and so she said that each additional adult passenger could be a safety benefit. On the other hand, Smith noted that in terms of younger drivers, there is a 25 per cent greater crash risk for every additional passenger.

“They are learning how to drive, they are new at it and so they can’t make the judgement decisions like the adults can,” she explained. (JRT)