As Apple’s new smartwatch goes on sale this week a vehicle safety firm has called for an immediate ban on using the devices while driving.
As Apple’s new smartwatch goes on sale this week a vehicle safety firm has called for an immediate ban on using the devices while driving. SmartWitness says that drivers wearing the internet-connected devices could be easily distracted. There has already been research into the issue which found that using a smartwatch increases reaction times threefold. The Transport Research Laboratory in the UK found that for a driver to react to an emergency situation while reading a message on a smartwatch would take an average of 2.52 seconds; using a handheld cellphone it would be 1.85 seconds; while talking to a passenger there would be a 0.9 second delay in reacting. Mark Berry of SmartWitness told Business Car Manager that at 50mph it would add 36.6 feet to the stopping distance for a vehicle.
