Opinion

Simon Jones: Driven to distraction

A common argument in road safety debates is how Highway Code braking distances are long out of date because they don’t consider technology improvements in more recent years. Anti-lock braking systems and anti-collision radar systems are just two of the ways that have drastically reduced braking distances. So why have road safety charities like Brake argued that stopping distances in the Highway Code need to be extended?

Well, the answer is that thinking time has increased dramatically. While technology has helped make cars safer, it has also brought more distractions to driving. Gone are the days of a simple dashboard with tachometer, speedometer and odometer. Today’s cars can be set up to provide a plethora of superfluous information, like G-force for god’s sake, and instead of shunning the massive distraction of mobile phones while behind the wheel, they have been integrated into driver infotainment systems.

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