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March/April 2023 issue

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News

Hands-free mobiles as hazardous as handset use, study finds

Open-access content Wednesday 8th June 2016
From the archive:  Just so you know, this article is more than 3 years old.

Hands-free mobiles as hazardous as handset use, study finds

The research, published in the Transportation Research Journal, says that drivers who are engaged in conversation are less likely to spot and react to hazards.

The study, carried out by researchers at the University of Sussex, involved three groups of 20 volunteers watching films shot from the point of view of a road driver and tasked with spotting road hazards such as pedestrians stepping into the road or other vehicles pulling out. The first group was undistracted during the task and the second group was distracted by requests to agree or disagree with statements that required them to use mental imagery and the third group was tested with statements that did not require visualisation. The group members all had a minimum of ten years driving experience and were not aware of the purpose of the exercise.

Hazard detection and response times were best among the undistracted group and worst among those who were asked to answer questions that required visualisation. Eye tracking showed that those in the group that had to visualize were most prone to restricting their gaze to a small section of the road in front of them, reducing their hazard spotting capacity.

"Telephone conversations may interfere with driving performance because the two tasks compete for similar processing resources, due to the imagery-evoking aspects of phone use," say the authors.

In 2006, research by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated that up to 22% of crashes could be caused by driver distraction, and drivers who perform a secondary task at the wheel are to three more times likely to have a crash.

The road charity Brake, which has previously called for the ban of hands-free mobile phones while driving has renewed its call for the government to restrict use of hands-free mobiles.

Lucy Amos, research adviser for the charity said: This new study is only the latest of many which adds weight to extending the existing legislation to cover all mobile phone use within a vehicle, not just the use of hand-held mobile devices. We call on the government to take action and remove the clear and present danger of mobile phones on our roads."

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Monday 4th July 2016
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 Fine for haulage company after worker crushed on Christmas eve

Tuesday 7th June 2016
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 ‘Largest ever’ UK wellbeing survey aims to improve mental health at work

Friday 10th June 2016
The National Employee Mental Wellbeing Survey has been launched by Business in the Community (BITC) and will be conducted by YouGov every year for the next three years. BITC aims to gain a comprehensive understanding of the UK workforce’s mental wellbeing, and identify solutions to improve mental health at work.
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 Work experience student crushed to death at car garage

Monday 13th June 2016
On 20 December 2014, Muhammed Zohaib Yasin was observing another employee carrying out repair work on a Vauxhall Corsa.Yasin was at the front of the car adding antifreeze to the engine, when the mechanic he was working with opened the driver’s door and turned on the ignition. The vehicle shot forward trapping and crushing the 27-year-old.An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the car had no defects but it had been left in gear with the handbrake off.
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 BT engineer sustained broken back in 7 m fall

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 Tax breaks for private medical treatment could lower sickness absence, says EEF

Wednesday 15th June 2016
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 IOSH launches new five-year strategy

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 Risk & Compliance software provider collaborates with HSE and Costain to improve risk management on worksites

Friday 17th March 2023
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 CPS rejects corporate manslaughter charge against Highways England over smart motorway death

Friday 11th February 2022
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