A study released by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has found that hands-free technologies found in many cars today are still distracting to drivers. This is the case even when the drivers' eyes are on the road and their hands are both on the wheels.
The study, which was conducted by the University of Utah, involved sophisticated infotainment systems in today's cars as well as voice-activated systems outfitted in smartphones and other mobile devices. These included proprietary navigations platforms of certain car manufacturers and the popular personal voice-activated assistants such as Apple's Siri, Google Now and Microsoft's Cortana. Automakers are installing these hands-free technologies with hope that it will be a safe way for people to operate their devices and navigation systems while driving, according to Mashable.
The researchers found that the system outfitted in the Mazda 6 poses the greatest risk, as it could distract the driver for up to 27 seconds. They also discovered that the vehicle's system is fraught with complicated steps, poor voice detection and longer task processing time, CBC noted.
On the other hand, the infotainment system in the Chevrolet Equinox, Buick Lacrosse and Toyota 4Runner were found to be the safest because they were more intuitive and better at understanding voice commands, keeping drivers distracted from 2.4 to 2.9 seconds only.
Google Now outperformed Siri and Cortana, clinching the best phone system for motorists with a score of 3.0 while Siri and Cortana posted 3.4 and 3.8 seconds, respectively.
"The lasting effects of mental distraction pose a hidden and pervasive danger that would likely come as a surprise to most drivers," Peter Kissinger, President and CEO at AAA, said in an official statement. "The results indicate that motorists could miss stop signs, pedestrians and other vehicles while the mind is readjusting to the task of driving."
The study also revealed that usage, experience and practice did not help. The majority of the test subjects used the infotainment and hands-free technologies for five days, and there was no marked difference in the difficulty encountered on the first and the fifth day.
