Study: Voice-activated systems in cars raise the risk of accidents

Study: Voice-activated systems in cars raise the risk of accidents
A golden rule of safe driving asserts to avoid using your smartphone when behind the wheel — hence the recent spate of new traffic regulations and resulting enforcement.

A golden rule of safe driving asserts to avoid using your smartphone when behind the wheel — hence the recent spate of new traffic regulations and resulting enforcement. The rules paved the way for inventions like the Bluetooth earpiece and voice-activated car systems. While these technologies have transformed the way drivers communicate, they can still make some more prone to accidents. A recent studyreveals voice-activated car systems that car makers so dearly promote as a “smarter way to interact” are turning out to be a major cause of distraction while on the road.

As we’ve covered many times on ExtremeTech, voice-activated car systems let drivers interact with the car and their smartphones using voice commands instead of their hands. No matter how easy the systems are to use, though, it turns out they still take your mind off the road. Since voice-activated car systems tend to be pretty complex, they demand more mental work as a result.

Specifically, the American Automobile Association, which sponsored the study, says talking to these voice-activated car systems creates a surprisingly high mental workload for drivers — much more so than what’s normal when talking to, say, a passenger. Thanks to the complex commands required to operate the system, the driver’s attention on the road tends to slip while using them.

Worse, using the system creates a kind of lingering distraction on the driver’s mind, and keeps them in that state for an average of 27 seconds after the completion of interaction. Less-complex systems mentioned in the report were found to still leave the driver distracted for 15 seconds, again even after he or she discontinues using the service.

David Strayer, a neuroscientist at the University of Utah that conducted the study with his team, says the usage of these voice-activated systems demands the same amount of brain power as balancing a checkbook while driving. “When you hang up [from a call], you have to figure out where you are, how fast you’re going, [and] where other vehicles are,” he said.

Safety advocates have long alleged car makers and apps creators are putting profits ahead of safety. The study in this particular case involved numerous cars that come with such voice-activated systems as standard. Strayer found cars from Mazda, Hyundai, Chrysler, Nissan, and Volkswagen come with the most complicated systems. In addition, smartphone software like Microsoft Cortana, Google Now, and Apple’s Siri also came under fire.

The study was conducted on 257 drivers, ranging from age 27 to 70. For drivers above age 50, the risk of an accident is generally higher to begin with.

The study concluded that hands-free doesn’t necessarily mean the driver’s mind is also free. “With the explosive growth in technology, the problem of driver distraction is poised to become much more acute,” the researchers wrote.