Hands-free phones can increase risk of crashing

THE use of hands-freemobile phones while driving is more likely to distract a motorist than talking to a passenger or changing a radio in the vehicle.

New research shows that the use of hands-free car phone sets — which are widely regarded as safer than hand-held units — can still increase the risk of a collision for drivers.

The study by Britain’s Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), called Conversation in Cars: The Relative Hazards of Mobile Phones, tested the effect of certain tasks on driver performance.

They included talking on a hands-free phone, talking to a passenger and using the radio and climate controls.

“The results showed a complex, but consistent, picture of distraction,” states the report.

Although drivers engaged in conversation with passengers, or on hands-free phones, spent less time looking away from the road than when changing theradio or climate controls, they still had a slowerresponse time and missed more road signs.

“These results are consistent with other experimental work that has shown a reduction in situation awareness when drivers are engaged in conversations,” said a TRL spokesperson.

The findings provide a strong rebuttal to claims by mobile phone companies that phones should not be singled out for safety legislation because they are no worse than many other distractions in vehicles.

“This study demonstrates that driving-and-talking is cognitively demanding, and results in poorer driving performance, supporting the conclusion of other research that this activity is likely to reduce safety,” said the spokesperson.

Since September, it’s an offence for motorists here to use a hand-held mobile phone while driving. But there is no legislation which explicitly prohibits motorists from using hand-free sets.

However, a garda spokesperson pointed out that other traffic legislation can be used to prosecute motorists who engage in careless or reckless driving behaviour while using hand-free sets.

The Department of Transport said it has no plans to introduce a specific ban on the use of hands-free phones while driving, although it is keeping the issue under review.

Figures show that more than 1,000 motorists, on average, are being stopped each month for using a mobile phone while driving.

Drivers incur either two or four penalty points for the offence and fines range from €60 to €90.

Meanwhile, gardaí and the Road Safety Authority have repeated road safety messages to motorists, urging them to exercise caution on the roads over the Easter weekend and in particular, to reduce speed.

Nine people were killed in collisions on roads in the Republic over the same holiday period last year.

Assistant Garda Commissioner Eddie Rock advised motorists who wished to drink alcohol over the holiday to use a designated driver or public transport.

Between 350 and 400 people are being arrested each week on suspicion of drink driving since theintroduction of random breath testing last summer.

A total of 95 people have died in road collisions so far in 2007.