What makes a safe driver?

I drive fast. I don't necessarily signal every time I turn or change lanes. I even follow too closely from time to time. Why do I consider myself a safe driver given these three unsafe admissions? I'm always alert behind the wheel. I pay attention to the road, to the drivers around me, and, more importantly, to my vehicle. I know the limitations of my vehicle. I keep my vehicle in good condition. I don't drink and drive. I watch the road, not my passengers (not universally, but close enough). One thing I am guilty of that I hate in other people, though, is talking on the cell phone. I'll grant myself that I don't engage in protracted conversations, but that is really no excuse for not having covered the call at an earlier, more convenient time. I fall into the common attitude of, "I'll just call on my way." It's a bad enough habit, but it's not one that I let interfere with my driving.  

I've attended a few driving courses (because I was a driver in the military, not because of violations), and the universal constant when talking about safety was that most accidents are not caused by a singular monumental mistake by one person. Most accidents are the result of a collection of minor mistakes by many people. One person is following too close while not paying attention, another person is on a cell phone, yet another person is repeatedly switching lanes. Individually, each seems to be easily managed. If you put them together, you have a recipe for disaster.

Today on my way home I experienced a large number of people driving erratically (3b). By that, I mean that they were not obeying simple rules of the road. Don't drive too slowly in the left hand lane. Maintain your lane. Keep a regular speed, whatever that speed may be. Allow other cars to merge safely around you. These are basic rules that we are expected to follow in the road. I passed 15, yes, I counted them, cars with drivers who were both driving erratically and talking on a cell phone at the same time.

It is with this issue I take the most umbrage (4). Following too closely is bad, but at least the drivers are aware of it and able to take precautions. Speeding increases risk and damage, but awareness assists in counteracting the danger. There is no counteraction for talking on a cell phone. It impairs your attention. It is physically impossible to maintain the trains of thought necessary to govern a telephone and maneuver a vehicle. A friend of mine wrecked her van because she was futzing with her phone and a pickup truck cut her off. They were both at fault in my opinion, but she's the one with the citation, the wrecked van, and the rib injuries.

I've been guilty of talking on the phone, but always, when it got to the point where it interfered in my ability to maintain my attention on the road, I put it away and focused on the task at hand. Even a hands-free set does not eliminate the problem. The physical act of manipulating the phone is only one portion of the attention loss. The other portion is much more indistinct. It's the fact that your mind is trying to reconcile the aural input with the visual input. The brain just can't do it. I don't care who you are. You can't do it. You might get lucky and get away with it from time to time, but eventually it's going to catch up with you. The Law of Averages always wins.

Give this article a quick read. Pay close attention to paragraph 2:

Also note what it says about employers being potentially liable at the bottom. Do you want to explain to your boss why you cost the company $5 million because you couldn't wait 15 minutes to take that call? This article even compares cell phone driving to drunk driving. From what I saw today, I would agree with that assessment completely. People today were unable to negotiate simple lane maintenance, and certainly did not have what I would call adequate reaction times for braking.

Point blank, if you're going to drive then get off the phone. I don't care if it's a hands-free set. I don't care if you're running late. I don't care if you really, really miss your snooky-wookums and need to hear his/her voice. Get off the phone. The only reason for being on the phone is a dire emergency and are unable to stop (such as heading to the hospital to transport the bodies of people you ran into because you were on the cell phone while they were on the crosswalk).