Now before I get jumped on here, I do not use my phone directly while driving but occasionally I may use a blue tooth ear piece (very rarely) thinking this was legal. Technically it isn't illegal but if the police thinking your being distracted while using one they can pull you over and fine you but they have to be able to prove you were using it (call records would come into play here) I was going to put up a thread asking people to recommended a decent Bluetooth ear piece but then decided to google its legality of use and found that a study had been done and showed that people were indeed distracted while using hands free/Bluetooth and people are pushing for phone use to be banned full stop. I'm really not bothered if this happens because as I said I very, very rarely ever use my Bluetooth ear piece. The thing that annoys me is that people are still allowed to smoke while driving which is far more dangerous in my eyes and if they are going to ban hands free phone use are they going to ban actual person to person conversations in the car too as there's no difference really.
Using a phone is very very very distracting. Speaking on the phone can also be distracting, I've seen too many people constantly slow down and speed on the motorway without noticing due to speaking on the phone. I tend to only take calls from family and friends, and keep it very short. Speaking to someone in the same car, not so much. Because the person will see the situation ahead and can understand when you are taking longer to reply. It's still distracting if the topic is difficult and puts pressure on the driver. Personally I'd say along the lines of "let's talk about this topic later, when we get there." The sooner self driving cars can get here, the better. The human in this personal transport equation is always the weak point.
It's definitely distracting. I try to limit phone time in the car as much as possible, even with hands-free direct through the car, as on occasion I've ended a call and thought... "wait, what's just been happening for the last 20 minutes?". Realising you've been on autopilot is a little concerning. What I find annoying is that some people's baseline level of concentration and awareness is just horrific. No need for a phone or cigarette or anyone else in the car, some people just seem to be oblivious of their surroundings. No policing that. Yes it's obviously ire inducing when you see someone all over the road because they're tapping out a text, but I find it more concerning when you come across the ones that are just inept. Self driving, will be interesting to see where that goes. It only really works if it's universal IMO, and it will be a looooong time before anyone is thinking of making it illegal for a human to operate a vehicle.
I know full well I get distracted if I have to take a hands free call. How you'd tell someone wasn't just car-singing like a pro and actually on the phone (all done through whitemancarmagicheadunit rather than a bluetooth ear piece) short of pulling everyone over moving their mouth while driving, though, is another matter.
There absolutely is a difference between person-to-person conversations in the car and conversations with a remote party over a phone. Let's say you're coming to a roundabout and someone goes when they shouldn't; the person in the passenger seat sees that and shuts up while you concentrate (either directly or in reaction to you swerving and swearing.) Same scenario on the phone: the person you're talking to keeps jabbering on 'cos they have no idea what's happening around you, distracting you from the situation. As for banning smoking in cars, I'd be all for that. Have you ever got in a smoker's car? Gross.
My stereo has Bluetooth but I rarely accept a call whilst driving unless I've an issue collecting my little'n, even on those occasions I found my driving to be affected. I'm very nazi like when it comes to road safety after a motorbike accident, I find some road users to be to complacent with driving. I can't see any full ban on handfree as they'd have to cover a lot more, I think they need better education on drivers to take driving safety more serious, how they do that I have no idea.
Replace airbags with a giant metal spike mounted on the steering-wheel pointing at the driver's chest; see how much more care people take on the road then!
S'illegal for 'em to be using a mobile phone, but the law has a specific exemption for two-way radios so they're free to use hand-held (or body-worn) radios - it's the same exemption that lets taxi drivers use a hand-keyed radio to call back to base. Anyone is also free to use any hand-held device while driving if you're using it to call the emergency services or acting in response to a genuine emergency and it would be impracticable or unsafe to stop.
Basically saved me writing that. Spot on. Smoking should be banned in cars simply because if you drop your lit *** on your lap, are you just going to sit there until you can safely pull over ?
I see your point Gareth about there actually being a difference but I often have to stop arguments between the kids if they are squabbling which is far more distracting. Time to have a rule in my car that arguments can wait til we have stopped and if they don't they can lose the internet privileges for a month, see how quickly they behave then. Think I'm just gonna ditch my ear pieces and stick my phone in the glove box so I'm not even tempted to look at it(not that I do anyway). That's the exact danger was referring to, drop a *** in your lap and I guarantee all your attention is going to be going towards finding it before you catch fire.
Yes, and just as illegal: smacking into the back of a car 'cos you were arguing with the missus or telling the kids that if they don't behave you'll turn the car around and there'll be no Cape Canaveral for anyone would be a clear-cut case of Driving Without Due Care and Attention, just like using a mobile phone. More difficult to prosecute, of course, 'cos you can get phone records to prove that you were chatting when you crashed but you're relying on your other half being still angry enough to dob you in if it's an in-person argument. Other examples of Driving Without Due Care and Attention which the CPS indicates are ripe for prosecution include undertaking, tailgating, running a red, pulling out in front of another car, tuning a car radio, and - in keeping with the 'ban smoking in cars' bit - 'selecting and lighting a cigarette or similar when the driver was avoidably distracted by that use.' EDIT: Missed the Dangerous Driving bit above on the CPS link, which includes the following: 'driving whilst avoidably and dangerously distracted such as whilst reading a newspaper/map, talking to and looking at a passenger, selecting and lighting a cigarette or by adjusting the controls of electronic equipment such as a radio, hands-free mobile phone or satellite navigation equipment;' - so talking to a passenger is already illegal if it distracts you from the road and causes you to drive dangerously. Definitely the safest option, if not the most convenient.
Bluetooth in my car. But if someone calls me I will normally tell them I'll call them back when I can find somewhere to pull over. I can hold a conversation with someone whilst driving, but can't do it on the phone for some reason.
Can confirm, Was on the phone telling my partner everything would be okay because she was rather worried. Crashed Straight into the car in front of me. first time and last time i’ve ever used a phone while driving.
Bluetooth in the car, in all honestly I find talking to someone else in the car more distracting as I was always taught to maintain eye contact, not ideal when driving. What I have done in mine is set a profile on the phone, when the Bluetooth detects the car stereo it flicks into a priority call mode only so only my mother and work can call me everything else is silent ring an nothing shown on the stereo. It also fires up spotify an accepts voice commands of forward an back so I don't have to faff with any controls. Automation has its benefits.
I had a Parrot MKi-9200 installed in my car when working for my previous company due to being on conference calls quite regularly when visiting our local datacentre. I use it all the time, not literally, and do not find talking on the phone distracting. More so, when talking on the hands free, I find that the driving distracts me from the call and I get complaints from my GF that I'm not paying attention to her when she calls...
They've also been tested to death by many more organisations who find the oppersite to what you have stated. http://www.nsc.org/DistractedDrivingDocuments/Cognitive-Distraction-White-Paper.pdf In addition you only need to spend 5 minutes on the road to be able to spot drivers on their phones, hands free ir otherwise, they'll be the ones who can't maintain a constant speed or even stay in their lane.
