By Megan Fleet
We’ve all heard the anecdotes and actually, you probably personally know someone who has been affected. It’s not AIDS; it’s not breast cancer; it’s not drunk driving. It’s texting and talking while driving. And in a recent Canadian survey (conducted by the insurance company Kanetix), 18% of the survey group admits to these cell activities while behind the wheel. The second question and perhaps more pertinent would be: how many Canadian drivers use a hands-free headset or other safety accessories? Bluetooth headsets and Bluetooth car kits accessories are proven to keep eyes on the road.
For smart phone users it is even more potentially treacherous when factoring in “playing games, checking social media, reading emails” and a plethora of other activities typical smart phone users engage in while driving. In fact, in a study recently released by ComSource a full 70% of cellular consumers use their phones to text. Discover the latest innovative protective solutions and premium electronic accessories from the industry's most leading brands
So what’s the tangible toll of these actions? According to Allstate Canada a full 80% of collisions are caused by distracted driving - in fact the province of Alberta gets first prize for distracted drivers. If that doesn’t drive the point home, the findings of a study conducted by the Transportation Research Laboratory in Britain will. Alcohol intoxication impaired driving reaction time by 12%. Marijuana? Reaction time suffered even more: 21%. Sober texting hampered reaction time by 35%. Hazarding a guess that the roads would be exponentially safer with the sale of hands-free accessories for every unlocked cell phone sold.
Given the number of cities, provinces and US states that are taking legislative actions to improve public safety we may soon be legally mandated to use Bluetooth car kit accessories. Cell phone free zones are seen in school zones, texting is banned in a full 35 states in the US and awareness of the dangers is ever growing. Before your next trip in the car, you may want to peruse the accessories that will keep you and your loved ones safer.
Map of texting bans in US
| Mobile Content Usage 3 Month Avg. Ending Oct. 2011 vs. 3 Month Avg. Ending Jul. 2011 Total U.S. Mobile Subscribers (Smartphone & Non-Smartphone) Ages 13+ Source: comScore MobiLens |
|||
| Share (%) of Mobile Subscribers | |||
| Jul-11 | Oct-11 | Point Change | |
| Total Mobile Subscribers | 100.0% | 100.0% | N/A |
| Sent text message to another phone | 70.0% | 71.8% | 1.8 |
| Used browser | 41.1% | 44.0% | 2.9 |
| Used downloaded apps | 40.6% | 43.8% | 3.2 |
| Accessed social networking site or blog | 30.1% | 32.3% | 2.2 |
| Played Games | 27.8% | 29.2% | 1.4 |
| Listened to music on mobile phone | 20.3% | 21.2% | 0.9 |
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