Study shows cell phone users slow down commuters

By William Atkins
Thursday, 03 January 2008 19:38

Science - Health

U.S. psychologist David Strayer concludes that motorists using cell phones slow down the flow of commuters: they drive slower and have slower reactions.               

Dr. David Strayer, a professor of psychology in the Department of Psychology at the University of Utah (Salt Lake City), conducted a study involving thirty-six students driving in high-fidelity driving simulators (made by L3 Communications). The study was conducted at the Applied Cognition Laboratory at the University of Utah.

His results showed that drivers using cell-phones drive about two miles (3.2 kilometers) per hour slower than other drivers; do not keep up with the flow of traffic; change lanes less often than other drivers; remain behind one driver more often than others; and have delayed (slower) reactions to the activities surrounding them.

The objective of his study (as quoted from the referenced website of the University of Utah) is: “... to understand the impact of using advanced in-car technologies on driving performance and traffic safety. Our research addresses three specific goals limited to the most prominent communication technology, the cellular phone.”

Strayer continues to state, “First, we ‘provide unambiguous scientific evidence’ demonstrating that cell phone conversations disrupt driving performance. Second, we compare and contrast the ‘increased risk associated with cell phone use’ relative to other real-world activities. Finally, we ‘provide a theoretical account’ for why cell phone use disrupts driving performance.”

In brief, Strayer concludes that drivers talking on cell phones make people’s commutes to and from work longer—possibly up to twenty hours a year longer than if they weren’t talking on the phone and, instead, concentrating on the road.

Dr. Strayer will present his findings to the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences later in January 2008. Included in his results are that cell-phone drivers take about three percent longer to drive the same distance than non-cell-phone drivers in high-congested conditions and two percent longer in medium-congested conditions.

According to Strayer, because one in ten drivers are—on average—talking on the cell phone at any given time, such increased drive times negatively affects the other drivers on the road—making for longer commutes for everyone. Strayer concludes that such drivers add about five to ten percent to the average commute in the United States.