Texting & The Distractions of Driving

Commuting has by no doubt become a part of our daily lives. According to US government statistics, Americans now spend over 100 hours a year commuting. Although one may say driving is a necessity, the rules that allow it to be safe must be strictly laid down. This brings me to our main topic, the distractions of driving and how they may affect the performance of the driver.

According to Jordanian Public Safety, officials state that on average 2 people are killed and 50 more are injured in 145 road accidents each day. These statistics are quite vast if you ask me, but what exactly are the causes of these accidents? It may be surprising to find out that they are merely due to lack of concentration caused by various distractions affecting the driver. Text messaging and cell phone use, munching on a snack, listening to excessively loud music, or perhaps smoking a cigarette, not to mention the harmful effects that has, are only a few examples of these distractions.

A survey released by mobile application vendor Vlingo says 26 percent of mobile phone users questioned admit to DWT, or driving while texting. Driving while texting is now fully banned in seven states in the US as well as Washington, D.C., and partially banned in a select few other states. Eighty-three percent of the people surveyed said they feel texting while driving should be illegal. But 40 percent of those questioned would OK DWT with the proper safety precautions, such as voice-activated commands. Further, 70 percent would use voice technology to speak and listen to incoming messages as opposed to typing and reading.

"In just one year, the public conversation about the issue of DWT has escalated, particularly in the wake of some high-profile accidents," said Dave Grannan, CEO of Vlingo. "Texting is such an integral component of our daily lives, and the cautionary tales about DWT danger have not stemmed the tide. We predicted last year that this problem would get worse, and it has since more people are texting."

However, a study conducted from Carnegie Mellon University found that just listening to cell phone messages can impair a driver's ability to concentrate on the road. The Oprah Winfrey show also hosted a program that validated this assumption under the title "The Risks of Texting While Driving - Multitaskers Beware!".

 "The human brain isn't equipped to concentrate on two things simultaneously," says neuroscientist René Marois, PhD, associate professor of psychology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville.

To add to that Alghad News published an article today which stated that the average usage of a cell phone while driving is equivalent to a certain dosage of alcohol thus significantly lowering reaction time of the driver. Alghad also noted that the number of fines given for phone usage while driving in Jordan in 2009 exceeded 138350.