RoadAwareness.org - New Articles

[de Jager]

Greetings everyone, I know that I've been somewhat quiet lately but I have recently posted some new articles on RoadAwareness.org that some of you may find of interest.

• Distracted Driving Experiment Highlights the Dangers
  http://www.roadawareness.org/news/di...ng-experiment/
• Three States of Mind for Drivers
  http://www.roadawareness.org/news/th...d-for-drivers/
• Hands-Free Law Gives False Sense of Security
  http://www.roadawareness.org/news/hands-free/

Take care everyone and ride safe.

[LiNK666]

Thanks Shaun, keep up the good work!

[fastar1]

Finally got around to reading these articles and I have to say the second one, on the topic of hands-free calling while driving, is particularly good.

I hope everyone who reads that understands that the risks of using a cell phone while driving have not disappeared with this law. The risk remains elevated simply because it is very difficult for any of us to shift any focus away from the caller when the circumstances require it. The same is true when having an animated conversation with a passenger. It is simply distracting. Like you said, just because you are freeing up a drivers’ hands, doesn’t mean you are freeing their mind.

Keep up the good work Shawn.

[de Jager]

January 19, 2010
Immediate Release

With the hands-free ban coming into full affect February 1st, RoadAwareness.org will be performing a practical experiment of how distracted driving affects situational awareness and reflexes. This is an interactive opportunity for media to get on the track and test how much distracted driving really changes their driving ability.

The objective is to highlight that any handheld or cell phone usage (even with the use of a hands-free kit) significantly reduces a driver’s situational awareness and reflexes and greatly increases the chance of being in a collision.

The experiment will be held on January 24th, 2010 in a controlled environment at Formula Kartways located at 79 Bramsteele road in Brampton. While seated behind the wheel of purpose built gokarts, drivers will go through several practical driving tests to gauge their skill, reflexes and awareness, with and without distractions. The experiment will be held from 10am to 1pm and it will take approximately 30 minutes for each person to complete.

We are pleased to have representatives James Kilpatrick from Young Drivers of Canada as well as Young Drivers of Canada Director of Training Scott Marshall (who also appeared as a Judge on Canada’s Worst Driver Seasons 1-3) participating. Also in attendance will be Kathy Buckworth (author of The Blackberry Diaries), auto journalist Michael Banovsky, and motorcycle instructor Julie Bolduc just to name a few.

Distracted driving causes drivers to be four times more likely to be involved in a collision and many studies have compared it to being legally impaired. Safer roads start with safer drivers. Key individuals and participants will be available for interviews.

For more information and to reserve your spot on the track, please contact:
info@roadawareness.org

“There is no excuse for paying less than 100% attention to the task of driving.” –Shaun de Jager, Founder of RoadAwareness.org

http://www.roadawareness.org/news/re...-free-driving/

[Akshun]

Nice work Shaun!!!

[de Jager]

Distracted Driving Experiment was a huge success.

http://www.gtamotorcycle.com/vbforum...d.php?t=107153

[de Jager]

This was a huge success today and was covered by CBC, CityTV, RogersTV (Brampton/Mississauga) and Brampton Guardian.

CBC will be airing their coverage tonight on chan 26 @ 9pm and chan 6 @ 10pm.

RogersTV will be airing their coverage on Monday on cable10 but only in the Brampton/Mississauga area.

I'm unsure when CityTV will air their coverage. Stay tuned!

The media invite for this event can be found here: http://www.roadawareness.org/news/ready-for-hands-free-driving/

I will update with more links once they become available.

[Wheelieboy]

Thanks for organizing this event Shaun!

My experiences:

I've been at this track 2 previous times so I'm pretty familiar with the track. During the 1 handed benchmark run, I was pretty comfortable even without power steering. I wasnt as fast around the track as I would be with 2 hands but still maintained a decent speed. My mind was 100% dedicated to driving.

The "chatting on the phone" test was quite a different experience on the track compared to driving on the road as everything happens so much faster on the track. I was somewhat comfortable with doing this as many of us have experienced talking to someone else while driving. I did notice that my conversation was delayed, as well as my driving. My mind was 80% dedicated to driving.

The test I was most surprised with was texting while driving. I had to take both my eyes and concentration away from the track. Although placing the phone directly in front of me helped see what is ahead using peripheral vision, but since my focus was on my phone at times, it was difficult to see small obstacles on the track such as the pylon. I was more aware of the obstacles and other drivers as I approached them, but if something were to jump out unexpectedly, avoiding them would be difficult. Since I never text and drive, this was a new experience for me, which probably made my driving a bit worse. My mind was 60% dedicated to driving.

All in all, although I was somewhat comfortable with some of the distracted driving tasks, my mind was never 100% dedicated to driving. In the case that a driving task requires 100% of my concentration such as an unexpected skid or a human/animal running out in front of me, I would have doubts that they will successfully be avoided.

[de Jager]

Press Release about the event: http://www.roadawareness.org/news/distracted-driving-experiment/

Coverage on:
CBC’s The National http://www.cbc.ca/video/#/News/TV_Sh.../ID=1394858958

[WoBblyCaT]

Hey Shaun, great experiment with expected results. Congrats on getting on CBC's The National for country-wide exposure! This is another step in getting the message out there that you should NOT taking the task of driving for granted and it requires 100% of your attention. Too bad when they flashed up your name it covered your shirt logo's, lol!

P.S. Wigglycat got a lot of airtime. It must've been her pink sweater.

[Salos Dafee]

Congratulations, Shaun!

I perceive substantial likelihood that you saved some grief, some injuries, and perhaps even some lives by your dedicated effort and results.

Keep up the good works!