Abstract
Distraction has been identified as a contributing factor in 22% of car crashes and near crashes and 71% of truck crashes ( and 46% of near crashes) in naturalistic driving studies. Using a mobile phone whilst driving is highly distracting and increases the risk of a crash four-fold. Despite the dangers and illegality, approximately 25% of recently surveyed Queensland drivers reported using their hand-held mobile phone on a daily basis to answer or make calls, as well as read text messages, while 14% reported using their hand-held phone to send a text message on a daily basis. (Author/publisher)