Cell phones shown to impair driving ability

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

New research reveals that people on a cell phone find it harder to drive in a safe way.
The use of a cell phone while driving is banned in many countries. Now a team at the University of Illinois reveals the good reasons behind the ruling. They examined 100 students driving 'virtual' cars where their performance could be monitored.

When the participants spoke or listened into a cell phone, they were less able to keep a safe distance from the car in front or to keep to a fixed speed, compared to when they only focused on driving. Both speaking and listening were equally detrimental to driving skill. However, surprisingly, speaking into a cell phone actually seems to improve the ability to keep in a lane. But it decreases control over speed. This sheds new light on how the brain works - it is as demanding to comprehend speech as to produce it, overall. And it is detrimental to your own safety and that of others to use a cell phone while driving.

Source
Journal of Applied Cognitive Psychology September 2005