Facts About Driving While Talking
- More than three out of four Atlantic Canadian drivers (78 per cent) would support a national ban on cell phone use while driving.
- 87 per cent of Atlantic Canadian drivers find talking to someone in a vehicle isn’t distracting.
- 91 per cent of Atlantic Canadians find talking on a cell phone handset while driving is distracting.
- Talking on a cell phone (hand-held or hands-free) causes “inattention blindness.” It’s hard for the brain to focus on a phone conversation and pay proper attention to what’s going on around the vehicle while driving.
- Drivers who use cell phones (hand-held or hands-free) often drive slower than normal, and are more likely to be involved in rear-end, off-road-right or head-on collisions than non-users.
- Talking to someone in the vehicle doesn’t interfere with driving as much as cell phone conversations. Drivers are better able to change their focus from the conversation to driving and responding to important objects and events more easily than when talking on a cell phone.