Swedish Study Claims Cell Phone Driving Bans Don’t Succeed
The cell phone driving and texting while driving debate has been a hot topic throughout this country for quite awhile. However, not every country has the same views as a good portion of the legislators in America.
In fact, a new study conducted by the Swedish National Road and Transport Institute claims to show that banning texting or talking on a handheld cell phone while behind the wheel doesn’t actually have an impact. Instead, the authors of this report want to see more of an emphasis placed on education about good driving habits.
The reason that they’re devaluing the importance of a ban is because they believe that people will simply break the law and continue the dangerous practice. That, plus they say their research shows no greater risk of a crash. In October, a study was conducted by this same organization which they say showed no benefits to safety from only allowing hands-free devices.
Sweden isn’t alone among European countries that favor letting drivers do what they want with their cellphones behind the wheel. They’re joined by countries like Albania, Malta, Moldova, and Serbia.
As a Burlingame car accident lawyer, I’m naturally skeptical of this kind of study. It seems odd that the authors would talk about how safety education is preferable, but then say that studies haven’t shown a danger. Whatever the results, I believe as a personal injury attorney in Burlingame that we should continue to explore all options to determine how to best preserve safety.
