Once the largest source of driver distraction was the radio, with the driver often having to find the right CD to play or pick his favourite station. Then came the mobile phone, with its calls and text messages, but now is the turn of selfies, or the self-portraits to be captured with a smartphone that are then posted in real time on social networks, so as to share every moment virtually with friends.
However, the fashion of selfie is among the most dangerous distractions that increasingly involve drivers, especially the young ones. A search for Ford conducted on a sample of 7,000 Europeans between the ages of 18 and 24 shows that 1 out of 4 youngsters has taken at least one selfie while he was behind the wheel, while 2 out of 4 have admitted to having taken photos in general while they were in the operation of their vehicle.
The study commissioned by the American manufacturer is part of the Driving Skills For Life program which includes courses in responsible driving for young drivers. The results that emerge reveal a large number of drivers who are aware of the fact that using your smartphone behind the wheel can be a very high source of danger, but despite this, 1 out of 4 is not able to refrain from posting on social networks or checking his profile even when he should not.
The most unruly boys are British, with 33% of them being in the mood for a selfie while driving. The percentage drops to 26%, if you take into consideration the young Italian drivers instead, and that sums the European average rate.
To make the level of risk that a selfie while driving entails, clear to the public, Ford has announced details of some internal testing that claim that the amount of time that you are distracted while taking one is on average 14 seconds. In case you want to even upload the selfie taken to a social network, then yous focus is shifted off the road for good 20 seconds!
To get an idea of what this means when translated in terms of safety, consider the fact that a car moving at a speed of 100 km / h, in this time frame, covers a distance equal to 5 football fields. Now consider that for a driver showing with similar behaviors, the chances of finding himself too close to an intersection or to cars that precede him without realizing it are many. Only then can we realise that the risk becomes more than real, with disastrous consequences that are too often witnessed in the chronicles of car accidents.
For more check: CarPlay | Locking text messages when driving, Preventing motorcycle accidents
