An online tool makes it possible to realize the concrete consequences of using a mobile while driving, whether for sending a message or ordering a meal. The results are chilling.
Reply to a message on WhatsAppadd eggs to the shopping list, reserve the evening restaurant… You have done these actions hundreds of times on your smartphone. And maybe at times you were driving. A practice whose dangers we know, which does not prevent 65% of young people from using their mobile while driving, for example. The government website dedicated to road safety also recalls that this increases the risk of accidents by 23.
It is not for nothing that radars detecting the use of a smartphone while driving are increasing in France and Europe. If you still doubt the danger this represents, try this simulator developed by the American company Quanta. The results are striking.
This online tool shows you the dangers of using a smartphone while driving
First, we drag/drop words composing a simple message. Translated, it gives “It was so good last night! Cinema later?“. A short text SO. It took us about 11 secondsshipping included.
By imagining that we are driving 110 km/hthis means that thewe were distracted for 350 meters approximately. Comparisons are then given to give us a better understanding. Here, it’s almost 40 meters more than the height of the Eiffel Tower For example.
The 2nd test aims to make us understand how our reaction time is affected. The goal is to drag/drop 3 elements simulating a ordering meals on your smartphone then click on a button representing the car’s brake. In trying to go quickly, we were late by 0.33 secondsor a distraction on 10 meters approximately. In fact, it will be higher.
Jim Ryan, senior vice president of business development at Quanta, knows that the tool has limitations (sending a message can be done by voice, for example, without taking your eyes off the road). But the goal is to raise awareness: “While this simulator cannot give a complete picture of the dangers of distracted driving, our hope is to illustrate how dangerous it is to glance at your phone and remind everyone how point this time can accumulate when you are behind the wheel“.
Source : Ars Technica
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