to get very aggrannoyed at people who are STILL using mobile phones whilst driving ?

[vienna1981]

l saw two of them this afternoon within seconds of each other. Both age twenty-something. A young man steering round the roundabout one-handed with his phone clamped to his ear. Then a young woman busy texting, Facebooking while she trundled towards the traffic lights. BTW I WAS concentrating on my own driving.

It gets right up my nose. Do these selfish twats think the law doesn't apply to them ? Or do they think they're invincible ?

"Bunbaker - using bluetooth is legal for now so I wouldn't have a go at you for it but studies have shown that it is not the same as talking to a passenger, it is almost as dangerous as holding the phone."

I didn't know that. I am not in the habit of making phone calls when driving. I'm struggling to understand why using Bluetooth would be any different to talking to a real person. To receive a phone call I just hit a button on my steering wheel, and to make one I hit a different one on my steering wheel and just say "call Mr Barnsleycook" or whoever it is I want to call. I don't pick up the phone at all.

As, I have already said, though, I don't make a habit of using my phone in the car.

Not enough police to enforce the ban on mobile phones. Similar reasons to why traffic sails past out house at 50mph when the limit is 30mph.

I used the fact against a friend that kept slipping off her seatbelt when in the back. I finally realised and pulled over, refused to drive and my friend showed her the 'backseat driver killer' advert on youtube. Still did nothing, she kept trying to do, in the end the notion that she was responsible got her.

Bunbaker

My impression is it's to do with the psychological difference between talking to a person who is the car travelling with you and someone who isn't. If they're in the car you don't feel under as much pressure not to suddenly trail off because they can also see the upcoming roundabout / pedestrians looking like they might leap out unexpectedly that are temporarily diverting all of your attention. Whereas on the phone I guess there'd be the temptation to try to carry on talking regardless / waste seconds of potential reaction time saying "hang on while I..."?

It's a really interesting study, and something I had wondered about for a while. Are there any studies on the difference between driving alone and driving whilst talking to a passenger, I wonder? On the one hand the passenger can also be a distraction but they also keep you alert...

Handsoff7
Think when your on a motorway and there's motorbikes weaving in and out, idiots changing lanes in the gap.
To the motorbike / cyclist/ pedestrian it's incredibly dangerous. To you in your tin box it's only going to be a dink

In slow moving traffic I was behind a car that kept drifting dangerously close to the cars parked alongside and, 'thought what the hell are they playing at?' It was a woman who in this order decided to:

• Apply lip liner
• Blusher
• Take a selfie
• Then read a magazine on her lap

I'm afraid it's looking as if hands-free sets don't make much difference.

"Talking On A Hands-Free Cellphone While Driving Is As Bad As Driving Drunk"

www.businessinsider.com/talking-on-a-hands-free-cellphone-is-as-bad-as-driving-drunk-2013-8

I have to admit, I did it a few times when mobiles were fairly new (to me).. Until it was brought to my attention how dangerous it is. Now I never answer when driving.. Stronger, sterner on - the - spot fines, points and re-test are well deserved. I doubt it would stop the selfish, ignorant bastards though..

The article comparing driving drunk to cell phone use cites an article where the "drunk" drivers would pass a UK breath test. The "drunks" actually did better than the controls. It's a bit misleading. Most people wouldn't risk driving close to or at the limit, but being at the limit is not drunk by any sensible use of the word.

As I've said before, it's not a good idea to look at your phone behind the wheel and I agree with the current law. I don't see why it's automatically a more serious offence than say driving with defective brakes or tyres (that is very/incredibly dangerous in my book).

Damnautocorrect, perhaps I'd think differently if I often drove on these motorways filled with pedestrians and cyclists!

Studies suggest talking or texting on the phone slows reaction speeds by at least as much as drink driving, even hands free - article here
www.psychologytoday.com/blog/get-psyched/201204/the-truth-about-texting-and-talking-while-driving
(Sorry - can't link on phone).

Seems to be because someone on the phone is outwith the driving environment and doesn't react like a passenger would to the surroundings. There is little or no difference as to whether the phone conversation is on hand held or hands free.

The reduction in reaction speeds recorded I seem to remember reading a few years ago were something like:

Driving at drink drive limit 0.8sec
Driving while talking on phone 1.1sec
Driving while texting 6sec