Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Voice-Activated Systems May Have Opposite of Intended Effect

Voice-activated smartphones and dashboard options were supposed to make driving less distracting, but two new studies say they may be even more distracting than just using your regular old handheld phone.

Voice activated systems let drivers do things like tune the radio, send a text message or make a phone call while keeping their eyes on the road and their hands on the wheel. But many of these systems are so error-prone or complex that they require more concentration from drivers rather than less, according to studies released Tuesday by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety and the University of Utah.

Here's more on these voice-activated systems and why Apple's Siri could be driving you to distraction.

No comments:


About SRTC

SRTC is the federally designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for Spokane County. Urbanized areas with populations exceeding 50,000 people are required to have an MPO. SRTC was formed to address the county's transportation planning needs. It provides coordination in planning between the public, cities, small towns, the county, the state, transit providers, and tribes.

SRTC offers services including transportation monitoring, transportation modeling, census information analysis, travel demand forecasting, historical traffic count analysis, geographic information systems, and trip generation rates.