Readers Have Mixed Views on Texting While Driving
Some believe the distraction of conversation or texting is as bad or worse than having one hand off the steering wheel. Few of my weekly polls have been as evenly split as last week’s: Texting while driving is a current issue.
Pick the answer below that best describes your thoughts:
- Texting or talking while driving is equally dangerous. 27 (33%)
- The distraction of texting/talking is much worse than having a hand busy holding the phone. 26 (32%)
- Having one hand busy with the phone is worse than the distraction of talking. 24 (30%)
- Texting while driving is not a safety issue. 2 (2%)
- Unsure/no opinion. 2 (2%)
For the entire week the relationship between the answers remained the same.
– Steve Patterson
Taking your eyes off the road while driving is stupid. Losing your concentration while driving is hazardous. Doing both, which is what I have to do to text, is why I don’t text when I’m driving. If you’re somehow capable of doing both (which I seriously doubt), it’s your insurance and your license . . . and no, we don’t need another law, we just need some more personal reponsibility!
Steve, I must confess the wording on this poll was very confusing. Were you trying to draw a distinction between texting and driving, or wondering if each is more dangerous than something else? What does “having one hand busy holding the phone” mean if you are CONTRASTING that with texting? I wanted to say that texting is more dangerous than talking on the phone because using your hand and eyes is more distracting than talking but couldn’t figure out which choice that fell into.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09288/1005598-28.stm (Verizon agrees texting while driving is stupid.)