DETROIT – Laws banning the use of cell phones while driving would have little effect on the number of accidents, according to a new analysis of driver statistics co-authored by UC Davis economist James Prieger and Robert Hahn, executive director of the American Enterprise Institute-Brookings Joint Centre for Regulatory Studies.
The study – The Impact of Driver Cell Phone Use on Accidents – found that, while still at increased risk, drivers who use cell phones are 36 percent less likely to have accidents than previous studies predicted. The study also revealed that people who opt for hands-free phones are already more careful drivers than those who use hand-held phones.
However, although the research found that fewer women have accidents than men, women are more likely than men to have accidents while using a cell phone. The research examined survey data from more than 7,000 individuals to assess the effect of a ban on using cell phones while driving.
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