Phone use rampant while driving — survey

Dubai: Swerve, cut, brake, burning tyres — driving appears to have become more like a game wherein you avoid being killed to reach a destination rather than a convenient way to get from point A to B.

In a recent survey by Gulf News, 80 per cent of 300 people polled said they talk on their mobiles while driving and 20 per cent send text messages. A second poll revealed that 14 per cent of 200 people had been in an accident due to using their phone while driving.

These results confirm the figures quoted by Lieutenant Colonel Ahmad Al Ziadi, Director of the Severe Road Accidents Investigation section in the Abu Dhabi Police Department in a September 12, 2010 news report by Gulf News.

Al Ziadi said in the report that there had been 15,972 text-related car crashes in the past eight months in Abu Dhabi alone, but this problem isn't confined to the UAE.

Statistics compiled by the international Pew Research Centre in June showed that 47 per cent of adults in the United States text while driving and 75 per cent talk on the phone despite a law banning it.

Figures from the US-based Virginia Tech Transportation Institute show that dialling a phone while driving increase the risk of a crash by 2.8 per cent and talking or listening to a conversation raises the risk by 1.3 per cent.

Gulf News reader Lodhi Azmatullah, a Dubai-based secretary in the travel industry, is a testament to that.

In early September he caused an accident while answering his phone.

He said: "[One morning] I was driving in Bur Dubai, when usually there is a lot of traffic. I received a call and picked up the phone to answer. Suddenly I slammed into the back of the vehicle in front of me. We pulled over, called the police and I was issued a fine."

Before the incident Azmatullah said he used to talk on his phone all the time with a headset, but on this rare occasion he forgot and picked it up. Since his accident Azmatullah explained he always ignores his calls "unless it's an emergency, then I pull over and answer".

Hands-free

Even though general figures show a large number of talkers and texters on the road, the Gulf News survey revealed that the number of those switching to hands-free devices is also increasing. Fourteen per cent of the 48.9 per cent that talk while driving use headsets. This may not do much to re-assure some, but it is the beginning of change for others.

Dubai sales manager James Mendonca believes that better wireless gadgets will ease problems in the years to come.

He explained: "I [for example] being in marketing, am on the road more than in my office, and talking on the phone can be dangerous, but unavoidable.

"Generally I try to avoid it, but in an emergency I would answer the phone. It's okay to use a hands-free device but texting is dangerous as it takes your attention completely away from the road."

Do you text and drive? Have you been in an accident because of this? Which are the other dangerous habits do you think should be looked into? Tell us about it at readers@gulfnews.com