According to Which? who carried out a driving simulator test, texting whilst driving reduces your attention to the road by up to 79%. It also showed that driver’s reactions to hazards was increased by 2 seconds, whilst reactions to hazards after driving to the legal alcohol limit increased by 1.2 seconds, that’s an 11% difference. Texting was also worse than using a phone in any other capacity whilst driving, however, worryingly, using a handsfree mobile to make a call also increased reaction times to hazards higher than driving with alcohol.
Drifting between lanes was one effect of texting along with getting too close to the car in front and one of the researchers even crashed whilst trying to send a text.
At the moment most of the UK’s police forces will issue a fixed penalty fine and 3 penalty points on your licence if you are caught using your phone whilst driving but Which? believe that there should be a tougher deterrent.
So, the next time you’re tempted to make a call or worse still text whilst driving, stop and consider whether it’s worth it. Surely it’s better to wait a few mins til you can stop and text/phone safely?
