Eating and driving - A recipe for disaster

TDT | Manama                           

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com   

Reported by Zahra Ayaz  

Distracted driving covers a broad range of risky behaviours. An all-too-familiar scenario is steering a car with one hand while simultaneously munching away a big treat. Studies point out that this ultimately diverts attention from what they need their focus on driving.

The blame is squarely on the fast-paced modern life, where people rush from one responsibility to another. In such a scenario, obviously, fast food and convenience stores are the quick options for a meal or snack.

Making this worse is the convenience of the drive-thru window that enables motorists to order and tuck into their favourite foods as they floor the pedal. Studies say driving while eating or drinking increases crash risk by about 70%.

The behaviour also ranks just below holding a cell phone when it comes to the prevalence of behaviours that distract drivers. Mostly, people between 40 and 50 years of age are at fault here more than others.

Speaking to The Daily Tribune, Mr Juma, a prominent citizen, said, “Every time I leave the office in the morning, I see many people eating while driving. “This is very common in the Kingdom, and nobody sees it as a concern until people get distracted and involve themselves in an accident.

“Some vehicles now have the technology to sense when someone is about to rear-end someone. “The tech will automatically either brake the car for you or give you the warning to let you know that this is about to happen.

“It is challenging for people to understand what they are not allowed to do and for law enforcement to be able to know that those particular behaviours are covered by this law,” according to Juma. Juma believes that technology will play a significant role in addressing distracted driving problems. So, is there a solution? Planning the route with a rested and healthy driver is the first step in ensuring road safety.

Even though drivers try to compensate for eating and drinking by driving more slowly and carefully, they are often unable to brake in time to avoid collisions. The recommendation is to set their alarms to wake up earlier and eat at home before commuting to prevent accidents involving food and distracted driving.

The message is clear: By picking up lunch at a drive-through and taking a short break to eat it in the restaurant’s parking lot, one could considerably lower the risk of a major or deadly auto accident.