And while you're reaching for your wallet to pay off the oil companies, you might want to consider turning off your cell phone while driving.

New research suggests that even hands-free devices for cell phones may not make driving and talking on the cell phone any safer.

In fact, information from the University of North Carolina's Highway Safety Research Center indicates that using hands-free cell devices while driving may actually make a bad situation worse, because the sense of false security could encourage drivers to make more and longer calls.

All of which puts in doubt the efficacy of California's new law requiring the use of hands-free devices as of July 1. At one minute past midnight on that day, you'll need a hands-free device, if you want to legally use your cell in the car.

According to researchers, the risk of driving and talking on the phone has little to do with the devices themselves, and more to do with a driver's loss of “cognitive capture,” which amounts to your brain being occupied with a phone conversation, rather than picking up the little clues that allow a person to drive safely.

Driving and using a cell phone simultaneously is about as risky as driving while drunk, according to statistics. The best strategy for avoiding an accident under both conditions is to just not go there in the first place.

April 2, 2008

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