Cell Phone use in the car

[MichelleVW]

Mine and DH's cars are both equiped with bluetooth so we always use handsfree if we have to talk while in the car.

My new truck has this too, and it's awesome.

Since people were able to manage before without using cell phones in cars, I don't see it as being necessary at all.. It's a "want" - not a "need".. If peoples lives are that jam packed full with other activities that the only time they can catch up on calls is while they're driving, I think it's time to consider cutting back - or rearranging ones lifestyle..

DD's life has been forever altered by someone hitting her while the driver of the other car was talking on a cell phone.. It was a very "important" call - the woman was trying to figure out where she could all meet up with all the other "girls" later for a night out.. Meanwhile she also had her child in the car - in the back seat - no seat belt.. Brilliant..

My life isn't jam packed, but when I am home I don't like to talk on the phone. So I use my 35 minute drive to work to call my mother or my daughter. I'm sorry about your daughter, but I just don't think talking on a cell phone while driving, hands free or not, is that evil or distracting.

 

[IFLOSIRI]

I never speak on cell phone when driving

 

[Angelhalo]

My life isn't jam packed, but when I am home I don't like to talk on the phone. So I use my 35 minute drive to work to call my mother or my daughter. I'm sorry about your daughter, but I just don't think talking on a cell phone while driving, hands free or not, is that evil or distracting.

I agree. I like to spend my time at home with my DH. I don't like to lollygag around the house yammering on the phone. During my 30 minute commute I can catch up with everything on the phone. I am FAR more distracted by talking passengers in the car with me than a phone. I'm not making eye contact with people while having a conversation on the phone.

It is extremely sad that anyone has to have car accidents at all and always sad when it changes someone's life. I just don't think that phones are always automatically the cause. Just because someone was talking to someone on the phone doesn't mean that the phone conversation is the reason why they made a mistake while driving.

Texting is a HUGE no no for me. It is too distracting, and it is illegal here and rightfully so. But, I have no issue with people talking on the phone as long as they are still paying attention to what they're doing. Some people can do it well, and some people can't, but it doesn't mean that anyone on the phone while driving is automatically a dangerous bozo.

 

[mrodgers]

Every time I hear about cell phone use while driving it makes me cringe. Not because of how distracting it is and how it's the cause of accidents, etc, but simply how stupid people are behind the wheel.

It's not the cell phones, it is the drivers. I can't talk on the phone when I'm driving. Why? Because the driving is too distracting to be able to talk! It's called priorities in your task. I'm driving. Nothing can take my attention away from that. I do use my cheap POS tracfone phone on occasion while driving, but my end of the conversation is usually just me asking, "what?" "What did you say?" "I didn't catch that." "Ah, never mind, I'll talk to you later, I'm trying to drive here."

It doesn't matter what a driver is doing, it is not the cell phone's fault. Changing a CD, the average driver will divert full attention away from the driving to change the CD. Not me. There's been times where I've switched CDs and it was completely the wrong CD because I wasn't paying attention to the changing of the CD, but was paying attention to the driving.

Yeah, I know, you guys are going to say something to the extent of "90% of the people say they are the greatest drivers, blah blah blah...." Truth is, I will admit I am an aggressive driver. I drive fast. I like to drive and like to drive fast. I am performance oriented when I am choosing a car. That's not to say that I am a nutcase out there behind the wheel though. I live way out in the country where there are no kids playing in the middle of the roads. I drive on my side of the road. The driving has my full attention, as I said, I can't even concentrate to talk on a phone because I can't divert the attention away from the driving. I love driving.

Most people are oblivious to the physics of driving a car. They press this pedal to go, this pedal to stop, and spin the round thing in front of them to turn. I on the other hand like to feel the weight transfer as I am entering or exiting a turn. I can feel the power rushing on as I apply the throttle. I can't brake worth a darn with the stupid ABS braking systems. I wish I could disable them in all my cars. I can however apply the proper pressure on the brake pedal to be just above the point of lockup.

Sorry, it does sound arrogant and such, but it is the truth. I am not just someone driving to the store or to work. I am a driving enthusiast and a car enthusiast. I assure you I am not flying all over the place like a crazy person, but you would definitely see me driving around 10 mph over the speed limit, which most people do anyways. Fact is, if you are capable of talking on a cell phone with no problems holding the conversation, then you need to put the cell phone away because you are not driving. You are merely sitting in a car that is moving down the road with very little input from you. May as well be sitting in the back seat.

As I said, yes, I do use my POS cheapie phone while I'm driving, but try as I might, I can't carry on a conversation because the driving is distracting from the conversing, not the cell phone talking distracting from the driving. It's my opinion that 90% of the people on the roads shouldn't be on the roads anyways, but if you are on your phone gabbing away and have any clue as to what the conversation even is, then you definitely shouldn't be driving a car.


Ok, talk about distracted when driving.... Like I said, it's not just cell phones. I use to commute from up north into Pittsburgh for my school internship well before the cell phone era. I glance over and the guy driving beside me has a coffee in his hand, the newspaper laid out across his steering wheel, and his other hand I see move up into view with.... a spoon full of cereal! He's drinking coffee, reading the newspaper, and has a bowl of cereal on his lap, all while traveling 65-70 mph down the road.

 

[RockAndRollBallerina]

Texting while driving, big no, no. Talking while driving, only okay if its being done with a hands free device.

 

[Squirlz]

I don't talk that much on the phone anyway, so certainly not while driving. Even if a collision is not your fault you have a much better chance of avoiding it if you're not on the phone.

 

[simba20]

Both of my cars (Nissan Sentra and Dodge Journey) have Bluetooth technology built into the car. However, sometime I do have to play with my phone while driving to switch the Bluetooth setting on my phone from one car over to the other, as I drove the Nissan one day and the next I am in the Journey and didn't do it while in the driveway.

However, with a toddler inthe backseat, I have had to sometimes drop the Bluetooth useage and switch over to the phone, as I cannot hear the person who is speaing or they cannot hear me.

My cars even allow me to hit a button on the steering wheel or radio and say "Call home or Call Brian/Disconnect/Dial/Cancel/Etc"

LOVE IT!

 

[IDoDis]

It's illegal here. With the city's budget in the tank cops are pulling people over left & right for cell phone talking, too. It's a $100 fine and one can expect a hefty insurance premium increase if it happens.

I used to talk on my phone while driving but only do it now in rare circumstances. I pull over somewhere and then talk if I have to make a call. Whatever it is, it can wait.

Editing to add that last spring DS did his science project on this subject. We did road tests playing Mario Cart on the Wii. Each person did 6 trials on the easiest course. Three times w/out talking on the phone and three times while talking. The talking did impede the driving time and increased the driving mistakes every single time.

 

[Cooky]

.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Our car has integrated blue tooth and that is what we use when driving.

Since people were able to manage before without using cell phones in cars, I don't see it as being necessary at all.. It's a "want" - not a "need".. If peoples lives are that jam packed full with other activities that the only time they can catch up on calls is while they're driving, I think it's time to consider cutting back - or rearranging ones lifestyle..

DD's life has been forever altered by someone hitting her while the driver of the other car was talking on a cell phone.. It was a very "important" call - the woman was trying to figure out where she could all meet up with all the other "girls" later for a night out.. Meanwhile she also had her child in the car - in the back seat - no seat belt.. Brilliant..

In my husband's case it is a business issue (so maybe it is his boss's "want" but if DH wants or needs to keep his job he had better do it). The biggest example is that at least once a month he drives 7 hours on Monday and again on Friday going to/from a plant in a remote part of the Czech Republic (remote in that it feels like the middle of nowhere and it is so far from an airport it is faster to drive the entire way than fly into Prague and then rent a car and drive the rest--but the cell has reception pretty much the entire way). During these drives DH is often REQUIRED to take business calls, handle business meetings via phone, etc. They simply cannot afford to loose him to just driving for those two days. Everything is completely hands free and he will (and has) tell them he has to call back later or simply not answer if traffic is particularly bad.

 

[badcramps]

In the last few years I have walked to work and I also do walking for exercise. You see a lot from a pedestrian perspective that you do not see from a driver's.

Mostly what you see are the blank eyes of drivers talking on phones. You think you are all such great drivers because you are not seeing pedestrians running for their lives out of your path, you are not seeing other drivers watching you weave in and out of your lane and take defensive actions to avoid being hit by you. You don't see the red lights you are not stopping for.

To all of you who say you are perfectly able to talk and drive safely, you are mistaken. I see the faces of drivers as they make right turns while I am in the crosswalk, just inches from my body. They absolutely do not see me, they are concentrating on their very important conversation, not what is in front of them.

I was once crossing a four lane street in a crosswalk with no light. There was no oncoming traffic from either direction. I started across and was in the middle when a woman pulled out of a side street, head attached to a phone and flew by me. Trust me, she never saw me. I'm sure if you asked her she would have told you she was a great talker/driver.

Last week a driver was flying across a parking lot, across the marked spaces, not using the lanes, she was headed right for me, I made a dash out of her way, hoping she would not turn into me and as she went by she was on her phone, her eyes blank, never knowing I was there and the distress she caused me.

I've seen people on phones run red lights, stop signs, miss hitting me and other pedestrians by inches because we are alert and paying attention looking out for all you wonderful talking drivers.

Drivers are not the only ones not paying attention. I once grabbed a fellow pedestrian's arm who was walking and talking on a cell phone and about to walk right in front of an oncoming car.

If your life is so busy, that the only time you have to talk to people you love is when you are driving, you need to seriously rethink how you are living. Why is your life and your conversations more important than my life?

Please stop the conversations while driving vehicles. It makes no difference if you are holding a phone or not, your brain cannot do both at the same time.

Cell phones are a great invention. Carry one for emergencies or use it when you are parked. I don't talk on a cell phone when driving or walking because I have never had the need to do so.

isn't this the poster who always deletes their posts?

 

[Carl Fredricksen]

My Vote: Whats a cell phone?

Got rid of mine 2 years ago, and haven't looked back. Don't miss it, and feel liberated from the constant pinging and ringing that my wife's phone does because people are sending her silly text's or whatever. We have a landline with voicemail, so anyone who want's to get me on the phone can do so, but I don't need the interruption when away from home.

 

[gator75]

I have been in an accident with my son , and was hit by someone talking on a cell phone. I have a very low tolerance for it if it is for an absolute emergency i can see it , but any other reason just isn't a good one at least to me. Our state ND dosen't have cell phone laws ,but i hope they consider it at some point. Y our point of view changes when you have had a car totalled out by someone yapping on a cell phone.

 

[Pixiedust34]

My cell phone stays in my purse in the car. If someone calls when I'm on the road, I'll listen to the message after parking at my destination and will call back later. If the kids are in the car, they can answer the phone for me and take a message. I don't answer incoming calls while driving, and if I have to make a call I'll find a parking lot and will park & call from there.

I think talking on the phone while driving is too distracting for the driver, and texting is WAY too distracting.

 

[Pembo]

I have been in an accident with my son , and was hit by someone talking on a cell phone. I have a very low tolerance for it if it is for an absolute emergency i can see it , but any other reason just isn't a good one at least to me. Our state ND dosen't have cell phone laws ,but i hope they consider it at some point. Y our point of view changes when you have had a car totalled out by someone yapping on a cell phone.

OP here...Yes Gator, I completely agree! Like I said, when I was in my accident I too was on my cell. The accident was 100% the other person's fault but I do wonder IF I had not been on the phone would I have been more cautious before starting to move after the light turned green?!

Since not using my cell in the car to catch up or check in, I've found I'm more relaxed when I get to my destination.

And as Cooky said

If your life is so busy, that the only time you have to talk to people you love is when you are driving, you need to seriously rethink how you are living. Why is your life and your conversations more important than my life?

I tend to agree....

 

[Jennasis]

I talk on my cell phone all the time. AFAIC, it is no more (and possibly LESS) distracting than eating, drinking, smoking or carrying on a conversation with anyone else in the vehicle. There is no rule against cell phone use in vehicles here. I plan to ask for a hands free device/bluetooth this Christmas though. When I use my phone currently, I put it on speaker phone and do not hold the phone.

What I really hate are people who wear their bluetooths all the time like it's a piece of jewelry!

 

[bananda]

it's illegal in australia and has been for years.

 

[KimR]

I never talk on my phone while driving because I'm not good at multi-tasking and thus would be danger to myself and others. It's so annoying to get behind someone going ridiculously slow and when I finally pass them, it turns out they are talking on their phone, apparently oblivious to the fact that they are holding up traffic.

 

[MichelleVW]

In the last few years I have walked to work and I also do walking for exercise. You see a lot from a pedestrian perspective that you do not see from a driver's.

Mostly what you see are the blank eyes of drivers talking on phones. You think you are all such great drivers because you are not seeing pedestrians running for their lives out of your path, you are not seeing other drivers watching you weave in and out of your lane and take defensive actions to avoid being hit by you. You don't see the red lights you are not stopping for.

To all of you who say you are perfectly able to talk and drive safely, you are mistaken. I see the faces of drivers as they make right turns while I am in the crosswalk, just inches from my body. They absolutely do not see me, they are concentrating on their very important conversation, not what is in front of them.

I was once crossing a four lane street in a crosswalk with no light. There was no oncoming traffic from either direction. I started across and was in the middle when a woman pulled out of a side street, head attached to a phone and flew by me. Trust me, she never saw me. I'm sure if you asked her she would have told you she was a great talker/driver.

Last week a driver was flying across a parking lot, across the marked spaces, not using the lanes, she was headed right for me, I made a dash out of her way, hoping she would not turn into me and as she went by she was on her phone, her eyes blank, never knowing I was there and the distress she caused me.

I've seen people on phones run red lights, stop signs, miss hitting me and other pedestrians by inches because we are alert and paying attention looking out for all you wonderful talking drivers.

Drivers are not the only ones not paying attention. I once grabbed a fellow pedestrian's arm who was walking and talking on a cell phone and about to walk right in front of an oncoming car.

If your life is so busy, that the only time you have to talk to people you love is when you are driving, you need to seriously rethink how you are living. Why is your life and your conversations more important than my life?

Please stop the conversations while driving vehicles. It makes no difference if you are holding a phone or not, your brain cannot do both at the same time.

Cell phones are a great invention. Carry one for emergencies or use it when you are parked. I don't talk on a cell phone when driving or walking because I have never had the need to do so.

Lol....you couldn't tell by looking at me if I'm talking on the phone or singing. I press a button on my steering wheel and say, "call mom" and my truck dials my phone and mom's voice comes through my speakers. Talking to mother on the phone with two hands on the wheel is no different than singing to the top of my lungs to my ipod, or listening to the baseball game on my radio.

My life is not that busy, but I have a 40 minute drive to work. I personally hate talking on the phone while I am at home so I use the drive to work to talk to my mother. Mostly it's her talking and me barely listening and saying "uh huh" every now and then, so trust me, it's not that distracting.

 

[Tink888]

I personally don't use my cell phone at all while I'm driving. I can tell a difference in my ability to pay attention so I don't use it.

I talk on my phone and drive very frequently. As others mentioned, that's my time to catch up or return phone calls I wouldn't otherwise have time to do. That being said, I DON'T do it if I'm in a tricky driving situation or need to concentrate, or if I feel that it's interfering with my ability to drive.. But if I'm just on the interstate - absolutely.

I'm not attributing this to cell phone use specifically, but a general lack of people paying attention and being distracted while driving all around....just wanted to add that our family has been driving from PA to WDW and back for about 12 years now and this year on our trip I saw more accidents on the interstate than I've EVER seen before with all of our other trips combined. Many of them serious. It was a serious reminder that with so many cars and trucks traveling at the speeds they do, the interstate is definitely not the place to relax or let your guard down.