A REVISED ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF RESTRICTIONS ON THE USE OF CELL PHONES WHILE DRIVING

While restrictions on cellular phone use (CPU) by motorists would likely reduce property loss, injuries, and fatalities from fewer distraction-related crashes, consumers would lose the convenience of using these devices while driving. Quantifying the risks and benefits associated with CPU while driving is made difficult by substantial uncertainty in the estimates of several important inputs, including the extent to which CPU increases a driver's risk of being involved in a crash, the amount of time drivers spend engaged in CPU, and the incremental value to users of being able to make calls while driving. Two prominent studies that have investigated CPU while driving concluded that the practice should not be banned. One finds that the benefits of calls made while driving markedly exceed their costs, while the second finds that other interventions could reduce motor vehicle injuries and fatalities at a lower cost. Another issue is that CPU places increased risks on other roadway users. This article revises the assumptions used in the 2 prior analyses to make them consistent and updates them using recent data. The result is a best estimate of zero for the net benefits of CPU while driving, a finding that differs greatly from the earlier work. Revised cost effectiveness estimates for CPU while driving moves in the opposite direction, finding that the cost per quality adjusted life year increases modestly compared to the previous estimate. Both estimates are very uncertain.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/02724332
• Corporate Authors:

  Society for Risk Analysis

  8000 Westpark Drive, Suite 130
  McLean, VA  United States  22102
• Authors:
  • Cohen, J T
  • Graham, J D
• Publication Date: 2003

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 5-17
• Serial:
  • Risk Analysis
  • Volume: 23
  • Issue Number: 1
  • Publisher: Society for Risk Analysis
  • ISSN: 0272-4332
  • Serial URL: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1539-6924

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automobile driving; Behavior; Benefit cost analysis; Cellular telephones; Cost effectiveness; Crash causes; Crash risk forecasting; Distraction; Economic analysis; High risk drivers; Highway safety; Human factors in crashes; Traffic crashes
• Subject Areas: Economics; Highways; Safety and Human Factors; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00963174
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Sep 8 2003 12:00AM