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As described, this has interesting implications for GPS navigation: The NTSB recommendation calls for the ban the nonemergency use of portable electronic device
by ekidd 15y ago
As described, this has interesting implications for GPS navigation: The NTSB recommendation calls for the ban the nonemergency use of portable electronic devices for all drivers.
When I'm driving in an unfamiliar city, I often keep my phone in a windshield holder, and leave the navigation display on. This allows me to glance down for an instant, and see the big arrow indicating the direction of my next turn.
Done right, this takes about a quarter second, and it gives me a half mile of warning before changing lanes. This seems like a net safety win, especially around cities like Boston, where last-minute lane changes can be dangerous.
Do the Feds have studies showing that dashboard GPS navigation makes us less safe? I'd love to know one way or another.
- anigbrowl 15y agoI very much doubt they want to stop people using GPS, although I might be wrong. The key word here is 'portable'; if you have your phone installed in a holder such that it's in the same place for quick glances, then those glances are no more of a safety risk than the quick glances you take at the speedometer or other dashboard controls. I think they're less worried about electronic devices as such, than by people futzing with them while they're supposed to be driving. If you set your destination at the beginning of the journey and merely look at the GPS screen occasionally, there's very little cognitive overhead. It's when you have to interact with the device and divide your attention between the different tasks of operating the device UI and operating the vehicle that you become highly distractable.
- Qz 15y agoI used to do the glancing down thing, but I found that google voice navigation is good enough at warning me ahead of time that I don't really need to.