Cellphone Talkers Slow Daily Commutes

From the Department of Obvious But Still Interesting Findings: A new study concludes that drivers chatting away on their mobiles probably slow down the daily commute. Even the hands-free talkers are guilty. On average, drivers carrying on phone conversations drive about two miles per hour slower in commuter traffic conditions, and fail to keep up with the flow. According to one of the authors, David Strayer, a psychology professor at the university of Utah, this could add up to 20 hours per year of travel time.

In the study, three dozen students drove in simulators, and the ones talking on the phone were more likely to stick behind slow drivers, and less likely to change lanes. In the real world, given that 10 percent of commuting drivers, on average, are probably chatting away, this inattention adds up.

What we'd like to know, though, is how, or whether, these findings could explain the fast-talking taxi drivers who spend all day and night jabbering away into their mics, yet still manage to switch lanes more than any group on the planet. Let's get them in the simulator and see what happens.—Gregory Mone

Comments

[Michael Elson]

Cell phone blabbers also cause traffic accidents through inattention to their driving. What amazes me is that when drivers talk to the passenger beside them, they seem to drive O.K.
So what then is the problem with cell phone yakking?

[William Cummings]

Riding a motorcycle nearly every day, I believe I'm very attentive to bad driving... the single trait nearly all bad drivers share is the phone stuck to their ear. I never see their eyes checking for me in the mirror, but I can always plainly see the phone at their ear!

[Goebel Craft]

The police need to give these people a citation for careless or wreckless driving. Get in their pocket get their attention.

[James Randorff]

I agree that talking on cell phones while driving is a big cause of traffic accidents and other problems. That having been said, this article is creating a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario. You are charging cell phone talkers with driving 2mph slower than other drivers, wasting 20 hours per year (And how many hours per year are wasted watching TV? Well, that's another story.). If they are driving slower, they are likely to have better reaction time and cause fewer accidents. Let's at least be fair about this and not jump on the bandwagon of fingerpointers, eh?

[Mike Vogi]

The Auto Insurance Companys need to address the Cell Pnone problem. Tripple the rates for cell phone drivers.

[lydrapseplema]

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[diawnelield]

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[Cellular in Philippine Phone]

Well, I definitely agree with you there, "Cellphone Talkers Slow Daily Commutes" it affects a lot in the traffic. Anyway, I enjoyed reading your post. It makes a lot of sense. Thanks for sharing!

-megan-

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[Lilliana]

Nice article. The cell phone should be banned while driving. This is very important because you can concentrate on driving/riding or it makes cause traffic accidents which is very bad. Certain rules should be followed while driving a car or riding a motorcycle. This will help you to be safe from accidents. http://carinsuranceclassic.co.uk/

[Wholesale Suppliers]

Hearing cell phone while driving is considered as crime in few countries, and they have to pay fine/challan for this. This law is in Pakistan and it should be adopted everywhere to avoid accidents and slow traffic.