Drivers are more distracted by Mobile phones than passengers

Drivers are more distracted by Mobile phones than passengersAccording to a new research, even when mobile phones are used with hands-free, it distracts the drivers more than the passengers or being drunk.

The research subjects were put in a driving simulator by the study team, led by Dr Frank Drews of the University of Utah, and the subjects were sent on a 24 mile drive on a multilane highway. In order to reach a conclusion, the group was tested with mobile phones, a talkative passenger and a silent passenger.

It was confirmed by the results that drivers on a mobile phone conversation were more likely to weave across lanes, keep a larger distance between themselves and the car in front and were four times as likely to miss turnings.

The researchers wrote, "Cell phone and passenger conversation differ in their impact on a driver's performance; these differences are apparent at the operational, tactical, and strategic levels of performance."

The study will definitely come as a bad news for legislators who have introduced regulations, insisting on mobiles in cars being operated hands-free only.

The study also bared an interesting fact that while driving, drivers were less able to concentrate on calls and also simplified their speech while attempting a manoeuvre in the car.