Today, a law comes into effect in Winnipeg requiring drivers to use a hands-free device when talking on their cell-phones. This is not a surprise to most Winnipeggers as it received widespread media attention leading up to it.
Although there are many who might oppose this law, we think the numbers tell the real story: According to the (US-based) National Safety Council, cell-phones account for about 1.6 million collisions every year from either phoning or texting. Since the Canadian population is about 10% of the American population, we can extrapolate that 160,000 Canadian collisions per year are caused by phoning or texting.
The numbers get even more disturbing when you consider the impact on people: A 2005 study in the Human Factors quarterly journal says that 2,600 deaths and 330,000 injuries are the caused by cell-phone related collisions. Again, extrapolating the Canadian ratio, that was 260 deaths and 33,000 injuries… in 2005. We all know that cell phone proliferation has increased so it's safe to assume that the human impact has increased, too.
