Most drivers have seen one or more accidents or near accidents caused by the driver in a car failing to pay attention to the road, often distracted by their cell phone – or even worse fumbling with the cell phone…
Texting.
Courtesy Darkroastedblend.com
This report, studying professional drivers should be an eye opener –
Texting Increases Auto Accident Risk 23-Fold
Sending or receiving text messages while driving is more dangerous than originally believed
As more states consider outright bans of talking on cell phones or texting while driving, a new study indicates sending and receiving text messages while driving dramatically increases the likelihood of an accident.
“You should never do this,” Virginia Institute Director Tom Dingus said. “It should be illegal.”
The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute studied truck drivers for 18 months, recording driving habits of 100 long-haul truck drivers. The long-term study discovered the habits of truck drivers is very similar to regular everyday drivers, Specifically, the study looked into the amount of time drivers spend reading or writing text messages — immediately prior to an accident, participants spent almost five seconds looking at their cell phone. The results of the study showed that drivers who texted were 23 times more likely to get into an accident than drivers who didn’t text.
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