Hands-Free Devices Are No Safer Than Hand Held According To New Research [Poll]

Earlier this week, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended that all states ban hands-free, as well as hand-held cellphone use while driving.The research says that when someone is talking to you, your brain is proceesing what is being said, even if you are driving and trying to concentrate of traffic. In response to the NTSB recommendation, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers is defending the hands-free devices saying, they're "designed to be used in a way that helps drivers keep their eyes on the the road," but this defense now looks like like it won't hold water.

Sweden conducted similar research and concluded, "There is no eveidence suggesting that hands-free mobile phone use is less risky than handheld use."

Basically, the one thing missing from this entire debate is hard evidence that accidents are increasing because of cellphone use, even though Anne McCartt of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says, "there is a large body of evidence showing that talking on a phone, whether hand-held or hands-free, impairs driving and increases your risk of having a crash."

By the way, the NTSB has no authority to pass a federal law prohibiting dialing while driving, but their recommedations have sparked quite a debate about the benefits and legality of such a ban at the state level.

[ Yahoo! ]