Measure Your Driver Distraction

&&&&&EMBEDDED_ELEMENT_START&&&&& {“id”:1420668662206,”originalName”:”2015_03_04_17_01_05_288_http___blogs_cars_com__a_6a00d83451b3c669e20120a64b059a970b_800wi”,”name”:”MMS ID 47182 (created by CM Utility)”,”URI”:”/28/-1126487176-1425510065728.”,”createDate”:”2015-03-04 05:01:05″,”metadata”:{“AUTHOR”:”automatic-content-migration”,”KEYWORDS”:””},”href”:”https://www.cstatic-images.com/stock/1170×1170/28/-1126487176-1425510065728.”,”description”:”Came from http://blogs.cars.com/.a/6a00d83451b3c669e20120a64b059a970b-800wi”,”externalid”:”47182″,”updatedby”:”cmuadmin”,”updateddate”:1425511400363,”associations”:{}} &&&&&EMBEDDED_ELEMENT_END&&&&&

The New York Times ran an in-depth article on the consequences of distracted driving accompanied by a “game” that gauges how texting impacts your ability to drive. Using a series of virtual tollbooths and a virtual smart phone, users try to answer text messages while navigating the tollbooths. It’s a simple game, but it quickly becomes evident that even a one-word answer increases reaction time.

The average user was registering a reaction time .24 seconds slower than normal when we tested it. While it’s a good tool, something more realistic like noticing brake lights might resonate with more drivers.