You're Really Old

[nbcrusader]

Or, you act that way if you use your cell phone while driving...

Study: Cells make young drivers react like seniors

I'm not sure why cell phones are always targeted. There seems to be many other distractions that can affect driving.

 

[joyfulgirl]

I enjoy using my cell phone on the wide open highway with a headset but I have difficulty with it around town. There is a 4-way stop sign near my house and I have noticed that almost everytime I see someone run it, which is nearly everyday, that person is talking on their cell phone without a headset.

I don't know why cell phones seem to be more distracting than any number of other things. I can only speak for myself. When I'm on my cell phone, it's like I go off somewhere in my head and get spacey, I'm not fully present. But if I'm changing CDs, for example, I am still very focused on driving because I know I'm doing something distracting so I make a conscious effort to be alert. When I'm on my cell phone with the headset it doesn't seem like I'm doing something that distracting--both eyes are on the road and both hands on the wheel, so I don't try as hard to remain alert yet I am not as present. Does that make sense?

 

[U2democrat]

I avoid using my cell phone while driving. If it rings i let the person leave a message then if i'm at a red light or parking lot i'll check it. I'm still not comfortable enough with my driving to use one. (I've been driving for 2 years).

 

[Liesje]

My dad is a sales rep for a company that's not local so he travels a lot with a company car. They have a policy of no holding a cell while driving, so his work phone is mounted on the dashboard. I think this or headsets are fine; in my experience, it's the dialing of numbers, or trying to find the phone, or checking voicemail, etc that are the real distraction. It's the phone itself, not the conversation.

 

[joyfulgirl]

in my experience, it's the dialing of numbers, or trying to find the phone, or checking voicemail, etc that are the real distraction. It's the phone itself, not the conversation.

And for me, it's just the opposite. It's the conversation itself where I drift off, while with the dialing I become hyper-alert because I know I'm in tricky territory so I make the conscious effort to pay attention. It's weird, kinda hard to explain.

 

[Liesje]

I guess it all depends on the person. My bf went completely off the road once b/c he was doing something with his cell and ever since (and even before) I've been less than impressed with cell phones in general. I really bug him about talking while driving. When he first got it, he hardly used it (he only got it b/c his house doesn't have a landline) and now he won't put it down.

 

[MissVelvetDress_75]

I found when I was traveling for work and had to be on my cellphone a lot that my head set came in handy but I seemed to be even more distracted. I tried to not use it when I was driving.

 

[Macfistowannabe]

I'd also suggest that it depends on the person. There are people who can use a cell phone and it won't affect their driving, and then there are idiots who don't even pay attention to when the light is going to turn green. Therefore, I've had to honk my horn more than ever before.

 

[deep]

so a five year old talking on a cell phone

should be o k behind the wheel?

 

[verte76]

I have only used a cell phone once and it wasn't when I was driving a car. It does seem like it'd be a hell of a distraction, but not the only one.

 

[indra]

And for me, it's just the opposite. It's the conversation itself where I drift off, while with the dialing I become hyper-alert because I know I'm in tricky territory so I make the conscious effort to pay attention. It's weird, kinda hard to explain.

Me too. I sometimes have concentration issues when I'm having conversations with people actually in the car -- I wonder if that partly because I'm so used to driving alone. But for me is't actually the conversation which makes my mind wander away from the road.

 

[Muggsy]

I don't like cell phones

 

[verte76]

I don't even *own* a cell phone. That's what I think of them.

 

[nbcrusader]

I don't have a problem talking on a cell phone while driving.

The challenge is replying to emails on by Blackberry......

 

[u2granny]

WHEW! I thought this thread was directed at me. I can't use mine because I have a stick shift. That's about all I can handle.

 

[Tania]

Its illegal to talk on a mobile without a hands free set while driving in Australia.

 

[U2Kitten]

I avoid using my cell phone while driving. If it rings i let the person leave a message then if i'm at a red light or parking lot i'll check it. I'm still not comfortable enough with my driving to use one. (I've been driving for 2 years).

I heard on the news last night that VA was trying to pass a law making it illegal for kids 18 and under to use the phone while driving. This is bad for 2 reasons, most teens have phones so their parents can check up on them and they are often driving, and also, this is discriminatory. Older people are just as likely to mess up while talking (almost hit a concrete barrier myself the other day) so why just pick on kids? In some states (I think NY) it's illegal for anybody to talk while driving.

 

[DrTeeth]

I heard on the news last night that VA was trying to pass a law making it illegal for kids 18 and under to use the phone while driving.

Yeah I agree, this doesn't make sense to me at all. In the Netherlands it's also illegal to use your phone while driving, unless you use it handsfree.

 

[Liesje]

It should be illegal for everyone, everywhere, IMO. If you need to make a call SO bad, then pull over.