Cell Phone Drivers as Bad as Drunk Drivers

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Think twice before you get on that cell phone while you're driving. A new study reveals motorists who talk on handheld or hands-free cell phones are just as impaired as drunk drivers.

Psychologists from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City had 40 participants operate a high-tech driving simulator during three sessions on different days. They were either undistracted, talking on a cell phone, or intoxicated to the 0.08 percent blood-alcohol level. Participants followed a simulated pace car that braked intermittently.

"We found that people are as impaired when they drive and talk on a cell phone as they are when they drive intoxicated at the legal blood-alcohol limit," reports study co-author Frank Drews, an assistant professor of psychology.

Lead author and psychology professor David Strayer adds, "Just like you put yourself and other people at risk when you drive drunk, you put yourself and others at risk when you use a cell phone and drive. The level of impairment is very similar."

Results reveal compared to undistracted drivers, participants who talked on a cell phone drove slightly slower, had delayed braking reactions, and were in more traffic accidents. There was no significant difference in the degree of driving impairment between handheld and hands-free cell phones.

The drunk drivers in the study drove more slowly than both undistracted drivers and those on cell phone, but they were more aggressive. They also followed the pace car more closely and hit their brakes harder.

Three study participants rear-ended the pace car -- all were talking on cell phones.

The authors conclude the safest strategy is to not use a cell phone when driving.

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SOURCE: Human Factors: The Journal of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 2006;48:381-391