Cell phones and driving.

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
OK, I've been thinking about this a lot lately. (I know, I need a hobby)



Why is it when people are talking on a cell phone they no longer pay any attention to the road, but people don't have that problem when they are actually talking to real people in the car with them?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 18
    Because people are stupid. <img src="graemlins/bugeye.gif" border="0" alt="[Skeptical]" />



    Also, there's more to using a cell phone than just talking. You also have to take your attention away from the road to dial, answer, and even hold the phone. By holding the phone, you're taking away a hand that could be used for steering and avoiding possible accidents.
  • Reply 2 of 18
    stroszekstroszek Posts: 801member
    [quote]Originally posted by starfleetX:

    <strong>Because people are stupid. <img src="graemlins/bugeye.gif" border="0" alt="[Skeptical]" /> </strong><hr></blockquote>



    Why didn't I think of that



    [quote]<strong>Also, there's more to using a cell phone than just talking. You also have to take your attention away from the road to dial, answer, and even hold the phone. By holding the phone, you're taking away a hand that could be used for steering and avoiding possible accidents. </strong><hr></blockquote>



    That's true. But just yesterday, I watched not one, but two cars in a row drive right on through a red light. Both were on their cell phones. Neither was dialing. Just talking. And in this instance, it wasn't the lack of a hand that kept them from seeing a big red light, notice that the cars around them were slowing down and stopping, and put their foot in motion.



    Did they just think that they were standing in a phone booth or something? Dumbasses. (not you. the drivers)



    [ 03-20-2002: Message edited by: Stroszek ]</p>
  • Reply 3 of 18
    cosmonutcosmonut Posts: 4,872member
    I personally don't like talking on my cell phone in the car unless it's on a long stretch of highway (like commuting to my parents' house an hour away), or I have a hands-free headset.



    I feel like I totally lose track of driving if it's not one of those two cases.
  • Reply 4 of 18
    Stroszek, thinking could well be a hobby. Do not diss thinking, it is the best yet least used tool in the world.





    Anyways, people have more problems concentrating on the road when they use cell phones as opposed to talking to someone in the car is because when we talk to someone on the phone our mind is quite often spending a lot of time coming up with visual information (whether it is used or not) to accompany the voice thus disturbing your visual attentiveness.



    Aswell, when someone calls on the phone they usually bring much more up-to-date information. When you talk to someone in the car with you, no extra information is needed so your brain can focus more on the road and usually, there is no surprising information from the passengers that will keep your mind busy thinking about it.
  • Reply 5 of 18
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    Cops should sit on the side of the road with sniper rifles and deliver fatal headshots to every cell-phone talker they see.



    Whether or not that's a joke depends on when you catch me.
  • Reply 6 of 18
    fran441fran441 Posts: 3,715member
    Here in NH, they can now pull you over if they feel that you are a 'distracted' driver. This means that if you are swerving, speeding, or if they have any other reason to pull you over, and they find that you were eating, drinking, talking on the cell phone, smoking, etc., they can give you an additional fine for that.



    So now they sell these devices that are 'hands free'. You say the name of the person you are calling, or you say the number, and it dials it for you and you keep both of your hands on the wheel.



    But I still think that drivers are distracted, even when just talking on the phone. It seems different when you call someone and talk to them, versus when they are actually there. When on the phone, you need to pay attention to what they are saying, as usually, you call for a purpose; you're not just talking because the person is there.



    The other day, I was behind a Corvette on the highway, and he was on his phone. I started to pull off of the highway and on to the exit ramp. At the last second, he tried to pull in front of me, and if I hadn't jammed on my breaks and almost driven off of the road, he would have hit the side of my car. I gave him the horn, and he gave me the double finger (no hands on the wheel), and jammed on his breaks, trying to get me to ram into the back of his car! Thankfully, there was a cop up ahead who saw all of this going on and pulled him over.



    Any way, I still think that when you talk to someone on the phone, you feel you need to pay more attention to them, as you are taking time away from them that they could be spending doing something else. On the other hand, people who are in the car with you require less attention, as they're stuck with you.
  • Reply 7 of 18
    stroszekstroszek Posts: 801member
    [quote]Originally posted by groverat:

    <strong>Cops should sit on the side of the road with sniper rifles and deliver fatal headshots to every cell-phone talker they see.



    Whether or not that's a joke depends on when you catch me.</strong><hr></blockquote>



    groverat, you're an idiot.



    They should use rocket-propelled grenades to just take out the car. A sniper rifle will just send the car veering off into random directions hitting innocent people.



    oh wait. cell phone drivers are already doing that.

    <img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughing]" />
  • Reply 8 of 18
    stroszekstroszek Posts: 801member
    [quote]Originally posted by Fran441:

    <strong>The other day, I was behind a Corvette on the highway, and he was on his phone. I started to pull off of the highway and on to the exit ramp. At the last second, he tried to pull in front of me, and if I hadn't jammed on my breaks and almost driven off of the road, he would have hit the side of my car. I gave him the horn, and he gave me the double finger (no hands on the wheel), and jammed on his breaks, trying to get me to ram into the back of his car! Thankfully, there was a cop up ahead who saw all of this going on and pulled him over. </strong><hr></blockquote>



    Which is why I say the cops should have RPGs. Would have taken care of him.



  • Reply 9 of 18
    powerdocpowerdoc Posts: 8,123member
    [quote]Originally posted by Stroszek:

    <strong>OK, I've been thinking about this a lot lately. (I know, I need a hobby)



    Why is it when people are talking on a cell phone they no longer pay any attention to the road, but people don't have that problem when they are actually talking to real people in the car with them?</strong><hr></blockquote>



    It's proove that talking on a cell phone in a car is improving the number of car's accidents.



    Speaking with real people is different : they are also in the car, if they see something dangerous they will tell you, or they 'll shut up. They are a sort of copilot indeed.
  • Reply 10 of 18
    andersanders Posts: 6,523member
    [quote]Originally posted by powerdoc:

    <strong>



    It's proove that talking on a cell phone in a car is improving the number of car's accidents.</strong><hr></blockquote>



    Yeah I hate drivers as well (sorry couldn´t resist )
  • Reply 11 of 18
    powerdocpowerdoc Posts: 8,123member
    [quote]Originally posted by Anders:

    <strong>



    Yeah I hate drivers as well (sorry couldn´t resist )</strong><hr></blockquote>

    Yeah so do i especially the window's drivers

    (couldn't resist too <img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughing]" /> <img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughing]" /> )
  • Reply 12 of 18
    gregggregg Posts: 261member
    Cell phones are great for the emergencies I've never had. Most people use them for convenience, or status. When I found I wasn't using mine, I killed it. Another legitimate use is for business. If someone is away from work, and phone, but needs to be contacted quickly, the cell's the thing.
  • Reply 13 of 18
    stroszekstroszek Posts: 801member
    [quote]Originally posted by Gregg:

    <strong>Cell phones are great for the emergencies I've never had. Most people use them for convenience, or status. When I found I wasn't using mine, I killed it. Another legitimate use is for business. If someone is away from work, and phone, but needs to be contacted quickly, the cell's the thing.</strong><hr></blockquote>



    I agree with you completely. When I was driving cross country three summers ago, my car broke down not once, but twice in Arkansas. A cell phone was of great use then. But I was also sitting on the shoulder of I-40. I wasn't exactly endangering all the other drivers.



    And business can present a legitimate need of a cell phone. But no business can present a need to endanger people's lives.
  • Reply 14 of 18
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    I have a friend who absolutely refuses to answer a call or call from his cell phone until he's pulled into a parking lot. Imagine that, eh?
  • Reply 15 of 18
    graphxgraphx Posts: 22member
    Cell phones and bad driving have nothing to do with holding the phone. They've concluded that even with a hands-free phone a driver is just a likely to cause/be involved in an accident as with a hands-on phone.



    It's all about where your attention is being aimed (as was mentioned in earlier posts).
  • Reply 16 of 18
    sebseb Posts: 676member
  • Reply 17 of 18
    g4dudeg4dude Posts: 1,016member
    I've noticed that when I am talking on the phone and using my computer at the same time, I don't do either really well. If I focus on the caller, I can't pay adequate attention to the computer and vice versa. This is the same idea with cell phones and driving.
  • Reply 18 of 18
    moogsmoogs Posts: 4,296member
    [quote]Originally posted by groverat:

    <strong>Cops should sit on the side of the road with sniper rifles and deliver fatal headshots to every cell-phone talker they see.

    </strong><hr></blockquote>



    <img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughing]" />



    Does that include pedestrians and skateboarders?
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