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posted by Fnord666 on Thursday October 05 2017, @03:18PM   Printer-friendly
from the loose-nut-behind-wheel dept.

New vehicle infotainment systems can take drivers' eyes and attention off the road and hands off the wheel for dangerous periods of time, according to new research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. Drivers using in-vehicle technologies like voice-based and touch screen features were visually and mentally distracted for more than 40 seconds when completing tasks like programming navigation or sending a text message. Removing eyes from the road for just two seconds doubles the risk for a crash, according to previous research. With one in three U.S. adults using infotainment systems while driving, AAA cautions that using these technologies while behind the wheel can have dangerous consequences.

AAA has conducted this new research to help automakers and system designers improve the functionality of new infotainment systems and the demand they place on drivers.

"Some in-vehicle technology can create unsafe situations for drivers on the road by increasing the time they spend with their eyes and attention off the road and hands off the wheel," said Dr. David Yang, executive director of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. "When an in-vehicle technology is not properly designed, simple tasks for drivers can become complicated and require more effort from drivers to complete."

Does keeping your eyes on the road really matter when traffic is stand-still anyway?


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  • (Score: 2) by RS3 on Thursday October 05 2017, @06:32PM (7 children)

    by RS3 (6367) on Thursday October 05 2017, @06:32PM (#577566)

    You also need to be ready to move at the same time as the guy in front of you. Assholes who think being in a traffic jam is a good time to send a text actually cause the traffic jam to last longer, two seconds at a time (times hundreds of cars and tens of stops).

    Yep! And that 2 seconds (more like 10) is a lot of cars through (or not getting through) an intersection at 30 mph or so. As seriously irritated as I am with people not paying attention in general, certainly at a traffic light, I'm just as annoyed with the 2nd person who does not toot the horn. If I'm the 2nd person sitting at a red light, and I can see the person in front of me is doing something (anything) other than paying attention, I feel it is my civic duty to honk the horn when the light turns green and the person doesn't go. Most people seem to feel bad about it and get going. Once in a while someone displays a bad attitudinal reaction.

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  • (Score: 2, Flamebait) by Phoenix666 on Thursday October 05 2017, @07:03PM (6 children)

    by Phoenix666 (552) on Thursday October 05 2017, @07:03PM (#577575) Journal

    I feel it is my civic duty to honk the horn when the light turns green and the person doesn't go. Most people seem to feel bad about it and get going. Once in a while someone displays a bad attitudinal reaction.

    While I have to fight down the urge to perform my civic duty and hose down the honker with a minigun. No offense.

    Here in NYC the guy that lays on his horn for such a reason is a complete cocksucker who just woke up 100 people on the block who work nightshifts, and 70 infants that their parents just got to sleep after an endless night of rocking them with a bottle, and on and on. All because he, one guy, had to throw a temper tantrum and act out. 2 seconds' delay to one guy's time is just not that fucking important. If the guy doesn't like it, he should take the subway, ride a bike, or walk, the lazy entitled fuck.

    Again, not aimed at you personally, but to offer perspective on how everybody else around might feel about honking.

    --
    Washington DC delenda est.
    • (Score: 5, Insightful) by slinches on Thursday October 05 2017, @07:38PM (1 child)

      by slinches (5049) on Thursday October 05 2017, @07:38PM (#577600)

      That sounds more like an argument to avoid living in New York or other similarly dense urban environment rather than an argument against honking.

      • (Score: 3, Informative) by Phoenix666 on Thursday October 05 2017, @08:00PM

        by Phoenix666 (552) on Thursday October 05 2017, @08:00PM (#577605) Journal

        It's an argument against honking in a dense urban environment, because different circumstances call for different behaviors, yes? In Seattle it's not a problem for a pedestrian to stop abruptly in the middle of the sidewalk, because no one walks. In NYC, doing that will result in the 10 people following in your footsteps colliding with you. In NYC walking around with your pants hanging down and your underwear flapping in the breeze won't get a second glance, but in small town Idaho somebody will tell you to pull your damn pants up.

        --
        Washington DC delenda est.
    • (Score: 2) by RS3 on Friday October 06 2017, @04:51AM (3 children)

      by RS3 (6367) on Friday October 06 2017, @04:51AM (#577815)

      While I have to fight down the urge to perform my civic duty and hose down the honker with a minigun. No offense.
      Here in NYC the guy that lays on his horn for such a reason is a complete cocksucker who just woke up 100 people on the block who work nightshifts, and 70 infants that their parents just got to sleep after an endless night of rocking them with a bottle, and on and on. All because he, one guy, had to throw a temper tantrum and act out. 2 seconds' delay to one guy's time is just not that fucking important. If the guy doesn't like it, he should take the subway, ride a bike, or walk, the lazy entitled fuck.
      Again, not aimed at you personally, but to offer perspective on how everybody else around might feel about honking.

      Actually, you have offended me, and offense taken as such. You've blown what I said way out of proportion without asking for clarification, then scolded and cursed at me, all based on your exaggeration. I never "lay" on the horn, for example, nor did I state or imply as such. I am human, have ears, happen to be an accomplished audio engineer (among many other things) and many sounds irritate me more than most people. I have a much longer rant, but it's not worth it. I'll just say that I never even toot the horn in neighborhoods, nor with cars or pedestrians near me, late at night, etc. I live in a semi-rural suburban area. I would never honk the horn in a town unless something was very seriously wrong and the horn might avert danger, harm, death, etc. In fact I rarely toot the horn for green-light sleepers, and certainly not in 2 seconds- 5 to 10, if at all.

      It would be nice if cars had at least 2 types of horns- a fairly quiet, maybe even pleasant one, and a louder one for serious problems. And yes, it might be good to have laws banning the use of the loud one unless it's a true danger / emergency situation.

      Know this: there are laws against distracted driving and impeding traffic, which also apply to sitting at green lights. People get tickets for it. So go curse at the cops, courts, legislature, etc. If people don't care about other cars / drivers, then THOSE people should take public transportation, walk, bike, rideshare, etc. Frankly I would happily support a system that tracks such behavior and revokes driver's licenses. Driving involves sharing the roads, consideration of others, generally a harmonious community spirit, keeping traffic moving, and the laws are written for this purpose.

      But these discussions will be moot, and hopefully soon, as self-driving cars come into use. Then people can text and websurf all day long in the car, and we'll all get along again.

      • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Friday October 06 2017, @08:33AM (2 children)

        by Phoenix666 (552) on Friday October 06 2017, @08:33AM (#577884) Journal

        Well, I really didn't mean to direct it at you. It's frustration at drivers in NYC who honk when the person in front of them doesn't floor it when the light turns green, or who honk at drivers who have the audacity to not run down pedestrians in a cross walk when trying to turn, etc. I, like you, am sensitive to sudden, loud sounds (probably died in an avalanche in a past life), and people who honk in situations short of real danger drive me nuts. Here in the boroughs a special treat is all the zillions of car services who like to pull up in front of buildings at 4:30am to pick up somebody who's catching an early flight out of JFK and lay on their horns so their fare will come out. If I had a rocket launcher for those times...

        Yes, cars should have two tone horns, a friendly honk, and a danger honk. Then a friendly honk could multiply courtesy and appreciation instead of multiplying anger and frustration the way our current one-tone horns do (one frustrated driver who honks produces many, many frustrated people who had to hear it despite having nothing to do with the situation directly). I've suggested it to my younger brother the engineer at Ford many times, but he and they have yet to take it up.

        Frankly I would happily support a system that tracks such behavior and revokes driver's licenses. Driving involves sharing the roads, consideration of others, generally a harmonious community spirit, keeping traffic moving, and the laws are written for this purpose.

        Great minds think alike. I propose an "asshole button" that generally works like a TV Be Gone remote. If enough fellow drivers, surrounding pedestrians, cyclists, etc. think a driver is driving like an asshole, they press the asshole button while pointing their remote at him and his car pulls over to the side of the road to give him a 15 minute time-out to contemplate his behavior. Driving courteously and safely would then perforce be the fastest way to get to a destination.

        --
        Washington DC delenda est.
        • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday October 06 2017, @03:23PM (1 child)

          by bob_super (1357) on Friday October 06 2017, @03:23PM (#578056)

          Some comedian in the past proposed suction-cup darts to mark assholes. If you have enough darts on your car, the cops can stop you and write a ticket.
          With modern tech, darts could work because you could tag them with the time and location.
          (yes, I know about the physics. I keep my car dirty just to avoid darts, that's the official excuse)

          > probably died in an avalanche in a past life

          Reminds me of a Roger Ebert comment. Paraphrased: Old horror movies had door squeak loudly when you open them, modern horror movies have doors squeak deafeningly when you look at them.