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Thread: Texting while driving?

  1. #46
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    I rarely send or receive text messages, but I absolutely would never send or read them while driving. It is against state law for one thing. When I was buying a house my realtor would sometimes send a text while he was on his way to say he was late. I mentioned it being against state law and he said he sent it while stopped at a light. It is still illegal to send texts even if stopped at a light.

  2. #47
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    Quote Originally Posted by Prashun Patel View Post
    It's the most dangerous thing we do on a daily basis.
    +1 on this observation. The physics of MVAs are unknown to most of us.
    I've seen one too many, after the ambulance evacuates the survivors.

    Kids are clueless about this sort of thing, and don't believe admonitions from family.
    A trip to the morgue, or graphic video of the aftermath are the only things that work.

    The truth is that the margin of error is very wide, and modern cars are safer than ever.
    The problem is that above 35 mph, that margin shrinks - fast.

  3. #48
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    I have an iPhone. That said, future generations will rue the day that the smart phone was invented.
    Please help support the Creek.


    "It's paradoxical that the idea of living a long life appeals to everyone, but the idea of getting old doesn't appeal to anyone."
    Andy Rooney



  4. #49
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    Quote Originally Posted by Stan Calow View Post
    Statistics show that hands-free is no safer than typing. Its the distracted thinking, not just looking down.
    I'd like to see that statistic. It is very difficult for me to accept that talking hands-free is "no safer" than typing on the cell phone. I'm not saying that talking hand-free on the cell phone is a good and safe practice, but it has to be "safer" than typing or reading a text.
    Larry J Browning
    There are 10 kinds of people in this world; Those who understand binary and those who don't.

  5. #50
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    Larry I know its counter-intuitive. Google up "hands-free-texting-is-no-safer-to-use-while-driving" and you should find an article in Scientific American. Lots of research on hands-free talking versus talking into phone.

  6. #51
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    Quote Originally Posted by Stan Calow View Post
    Larry I know its counter-intuitive. Google up "hands-free-texting-is-no-safer-to-use-while-driving" and you should find an article in Scientific American. Lots of research on hands-free talking versus talking into phone.
    I have no statistics, only personal experience: I only talk on the phone while a passenger, but several times I have noticed when I end a call that I really don't remember clearly what happened on the road while I was on the call. My mind was elsewhere...

  7. #52
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    Quote Originally Posted by Stan Calow View Post
    Larry I know its counter-intuitive. Google up "hands-free-texting-is-no-safer-to-use-while-driving" and you should find an article in Scientific American. Lots of research on hands-free talking versus talking into phone.
    I believe the quote was "hands-free is no safer than typing". Not hands-free talking vs talking into the phone. That I can believe. But there is just no way talking hand-free is just as dangerous as typing a text, or reading one for that matter. That is what I am questioning.

    Please do not mis-understand me. I, in no way, think that using a cell phone while driving is a safe practice, hands-free or not. But to say that talking hands free caries the exact same level of danger as texting, reduces the creditability of any other statement on the subject. Talking hands-free on a cell phone while driving is dangerous, but texting while driving is WAY more dangerous.
    Last edited by Larry Browning; 04-22-2015 at 11:50 AM.
    Larry J Browning
    There are 10 kinds of people in this world; Those who understand binary and those who don't.

  8. #53
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steve Baumgartner View Post
    I have no statistics, only personal experience: I only talk on the phone while a passenger, but several times I have noticed when I end a call that I really don't remember clearly what happened on the road while I was on the call. My mind was elsewhere...
    Could that be mainly due to the fact that you weren't driving and didn't need to be focused on what happened on the road?
    Larry J Browning
    There are 10 kinds of people in this world; Those who understand binary and those who don't.

  9. #54
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    As to eating, I do it all the time as do most of you. Not a problem until something goes wrong. Texting? Absolutely not, I've tried.

    A real problem is trying to find the buttons to run all the things your car can do now using all the tiny symbols on the dash that requires you to look down.

  10. #55
    A couple thoughts. First I will admit to having typed short emails while in cruise on the interstate. I don't do it often and may never do it again but I have.

    What I learned, fortunately not the hard way, is that looking at the device to type takes your eyes away from the road a lot more than is required read email. Talking into a hands free phone does not take your eyes off the other than to answer the phone. The consequence is I wander out of my lane if I try to type. So I stopped doing it.

    Even talking hands free is distracting. But so is listening to music, talking to a passenger, and messing with the controls of the car. If I am cruising on a relatively wide open interstate I think I am safe talking hands free. But I've pulled over to talk before in heavy traffic when I got a call I needed to take. I've also witnessed lots of other drivers that need to pull over, they are struggling to stay in lane and adjust to conditions around them. Some judgement is required. Unfortunately the people most likely to text are also relatively inexperienced drivers (I've been driving over 40 years) which makes having good judgment less likely.

  11. #56
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    Right now my mother is dying of lung cancer (she is on Hospice care with a life expectancy of months) so if I get a call while driving I look at the phone to see who is calling. If I am on a county road I will talk on the phone, busy roads I find a spot to pull over. I used to work with a guy who texted constantly while driving and he drove for the job frequently. He just thought he was better than the statistics. Another guy, a salesman, would eat a sandwich with one hand and talk on the phone with the other while steering with his knees.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC] "You don't have to give birth to someone to have a family." (Sandra Bullock)




  12. #57
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    I don't think its so bad to take a call while driving. If you have to pull over to take the call then so be it, but if talking on the phone is so complicated and dangerous, why is it worse than talking with your passengers? Talking to someone else in the car I bet you even frequently turn to look at them. Now punching in a number to call someone is a whole nother story. Maybe you can speeddial a frequently called number (spouse)

  13. #58
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pat Barry View Post
    I don't think its so bad to take a call while driving. If you have to pull over to take the call then so be it, but if talking on the phone is so complicated and dangerous, why is it worse than talking with your passengers? Talking to someone else in the car I bet you even frequently turn to look at them. Now punching in a number to call someone is a whole nother story. Maybe you can speeddial a frequently called number (spouse)
    There are a few differences. The person in the car can see what is going on. If all of a sudden you're slamming on the brakes, the passenger will (typically) stop talking because they can see the proverbial you know what is hitting the you fan. A person on the phone will likely just drone on and one about whatever they may be talking about.

    Also, a person inside the car can say "hey watch out for that car!"

    I do think there is a difference between hands-free and cradling the phone, I think hands-free is safer. Just not as safe as concentrating on the road.

  14. #59
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    Is there a safety difference between talking on the phone hands-free and talking to a passenger?
    NOW you tell me...

  15. #60
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    It likely matters what the topic of conversation is, whether with a passenger or on a hands-free phone. It's one thing to listen to someone prattle on where little thought is required except to grunt or say "is that right?" to seem as if you're paying attention. it's another to be in a conversation that requires concentration such as a business negotiation.

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