Headphones / Earphones while driving?

Tallon

Right, so I always see people driving with earphones in. I assume it is an ipod or a hands free or something.

I seen a guy today on the N4 with Dre Beats headphones whole driving, and he was bopping away like a mad man, paying F all attention to the road

The question is.. is this safe? Also, do they look like idiots :P

Francie Barrett

Tallon wrote: »

The question is.. is this safe?

No, it's not.

Tallon wrote: »

Also, do they look like idiots

Yes, they do.

johnos1984

Idiots behind the wheel are rarely safe

Sully

No law against it, and there should be. You zone out when wearing headphones because it cuts out all awareness via sound around you!

Gran Hermano

Would it not fall under driving with undue care and attention?

Mycroft H

Gran Hermano wrote: »

Would it not fall under driving with undue care and attention?

I could imagine that a judge/guard could see it like that.


Its ****ing stupid. They have no aural awareness at all.

166man

Never really understood the whole obsession with the Dr Dre Beats headphones. Mad money so they are.:eek: :rolleyes:


But it's not safe and were I a Guard I'd be pulling people over.

Tigger

Wtf is aural awareness
I ride my bike with headphones in
Is that more dangerous than with ear plugs in
Cos you can't hear much on a bike between the wind roar the engine the exhaust and the muffling of. Helmet and ear plugs

Really dear cars have double glazing and ad practically sound proof
If I turn up the stereo I can't hear the outside

All these things reduce aural awareness but what am I acually missing

ottostreet

Blocking off sound when I haven't adjusted to it (like deafness) is like being constantly off balance. I am definitely less co-ordinated without sound.

Try driving Gran Turismo or a car game with the sound completely off, see how crap you are!

Tallon

Tigger wrote: »

Wtf is aural awareness
I ride my bike with headphones in
Is that more dangerous than with ear plugs in
Cos you can't hear much on a bike between the wind roar the engine the exhaust and the muffling of. Helmet and ear plugs

Really dear cars have double glazing and ad practically sound proof
If I turn up the stereo I can't hear the outside

All these things reduce aural awareness but what am I acually missing

There are major differences between acoustic sound and in ear sound. Having the radio up high doesn't affect your balance, perception or awareness as much as having in-ear phones

Double glazing?, if you're driving a caravan, then maybe. You can still hear the outside. It's not 'Sound proof'

conzy

Its hard to explain but I think being able to hear the tyres / road surface and general surroundings makes me feel more comfortable and more in control of the car. Loud radio is bad enough but headphones make the effect 10 times worse.

Another reason I wouldnt wear headphones driving is because you could have an emergency services vehicle behind you or breaking a red light etc and you wouldnt be aware of them

DieselPower

Im pretty sure its illegal to wear earphones whilst driving a motorbike, have a memory of it mentioned in the theory test book.

Tigger

conzymaher wrote: »

Its hard to explain but I think being able to hear the tyres / road surface and general surroundings makes me feel more comfortable and more in control of the car. Loud radio is bad enough but headphones make the effect 10 times worse.

Another reason I wouldnt wear headphones driving is because you could have an emergency services vehicle behind you or breaking a red light etc and you wouldnt be aware of them

mirrors?

Tigger

DieselPower wrote: »

Im pretty sure its illegal to wear earphones whilst driving a motorbike, have a memory of it mentioned in the theory test book.

its not

Tigger

conzymaher wrote: »

Its hard to explain but I think being able to hear the tyres / road surface and general surroundings makes me feel more comfortable and more in control of the car. Loud radio is bad enough but headphones make the effect 10 times worse.

Another reason I wouldnt wear headphones driving is because you could have an emergency services vehicle behind you or breaking a red light etc and you wouldnt be aware of them

i feel the road and apart from the flashy emergency vehicles that you'd have to be blind to miss there is nothing to hear

BlackWizard

I use them all the time and I wear ear plugs everyday. I drive a bike though. But I can still everything around me.

I think people are overreacting. A car radio is just as bad as ear phones. It all depends on how loud you have them which would also be relative to how much outside sound you can hear anyway.

3hn2givr7mx1sc

Having earphones in is completely different to having a radio on. It's like sticking your fingers in your ears and playing music at the same time.

Tigger

baz2009 wrote: »

Having earphones in is completely different to having a radio on. It's like sticking your fingers in your ears and playing music at the same time.

no because then you'd be driving with yer elbows

BlackWizard

No its not at all. You can turn up the radio so loud that you can barely hear anything outside. Same can be said for earphones.

Earphones don't cancel out all of the outside noise and if you have some special pair which do then obviously don't use them in a car.

I often use earphones on my bike+car and they do absolutely nothing for keeping outside noise away from my ears. If I turn them up too much then I hear nothing. But at a normal level they are just like a car radio. I can hear peoples brakes squeel and horns just as easily.

BlackWizard

This country does not need anymore nanny state laws introduced telling us what we can't do. This could easily be one of them.

Pdfile

ottostreet wrote: »

Blocking off sound when I haven't adjusted to it (like deafness) is like being constantly off balance. I am definitely less co-ordinated without sound.

Try driving Gran Turismo or a car game with the sound completely off, see how crap you are!

i play GT5 alot, regular top 20 actually and well... i never have the sound on... i dont need it.


as for IRL... earphones is just a bit silly in fairness.

ottostreet

Pdfile wrote: »

i play GT5 alot, regular top 20 actually and well... i never have the sound on... i dont need it.


as for IRL... earphones is just a bit silly in fairness.

I am awesome at GT5 (I'm allowed say it cos I know its true!) but absolutely dire when the sound is off. I somehow seem to think my car can defy physics if I can't hear it, and completely ignore braking points. I have to be able to hear the engine note!

Padkir

BlackWizard wrote: »

This country does not need anymore nanny state laws introduced telling us what we can't do. This could easily be one of them.

In fairness it's a matter of road safety so I don't think it could be seen as nannying (same could be said about talking on the phone, seat belts, etc).

I think that you're never going to have as much attention on the road if there is music right in your ears as opposed to coming from a car stereo. That's my opinion, and if it was the opinion of those setting the laws then not much that can be done about it. I'm sure there's plenty of people who would say talking on a phone makes no difference to their driving.

dahamsta

Tallon wrote: »

Double glazing?, if you're driving a caravan, then maybe. You can still hear the outside. It's not 'Sound proof'

Sorry, but no. On older barges you can certainly hear the world around you, but newer ones are incredibly quiet on the inside. Lexus in particular take great pride in this.

And yes, double-glazing. Sure my car came with double-glazing as an option, and that's 12 years old. Plus there's the security versions, which are pretty much like being in an iron lung.

(On topic, yes, these people look like idiots, and I'd feel like an idiot if I was doing it, since the tech is there to allow pretty much any music player talk to any in-car player; , but I t sure why ple k it differs from listening to the car stereo jacked up. But no doubt the NIMBY element in here aret alread campaigning against that. Car Stereo Bad! Pedal-Operated Car Good, Safe! Mongo Hungry!)

hairyprincess

Not supporting drivers wearing earphones, they simply look naff. But what about deaf people? They have no aural awareness!

Tallon

dahamsta wrote: »

Tallon wrote: »

Double glazing?, if you're driving a caravan, then maybe. You can still hear the outside. It's not 'Sound proof'

Sorry, but no. On older barges you can certainly hear the world around you, but newer ones are incredibly quiet on the inside. Lexus in particular take great pride in this.

And yes, double-glazing. Sure my car came with double-glazing as an option, and that's 12 years old. Plus there's the security versions, which are pretty much like being in an iron lung.

(On topic, yes, these people look like idiots, and I'd feel like an idiot if I was doing it, since the tech is there to allow pretty much any music player talk to any in-car player; , but I t sure why ple k it differs from listening to the car stereo jacked up. But no doubt the NIMBY element in here aret alread campaigning against that. Car Stereo Bad! Pedal-Operated Car Good, Safe! Mongo Hungry!)

As a Lexus driver, I can hear the outside very well

dahamsta

A current Lexus?

Tallon

dahamsta wrote: »

A current Lexus?

It was fine too at a recent meet when I was in a current gs300

I think you're missing the bigger picture here, there's a difference between reduced sound and not hearing at all

Having your ears blocked is dangerous and stupid

dahamsta

It was, yeah. Welcome to my ignore list.

Tallon

dahamsta wrote: »

It was, yeah. Welcome to my ignore list.

Hahaha, great debate there mate

Thanks for letting us all know

golden8

hairyprincess wrote: »

Not supporting drivers wearing earphones, they simply look naff. But what about deaf people? They have no aural awareness!

Deaf people are more aware of their surrounds as opposed to people who are immersed in the sound track that is being played in the device. That goes for all road users.

dahamsta

Another point is that not all earphones are noise cancelling. There's a lot of factors involved. I still don't get why anyone would do it. If anything, it's just advertising inability and/or fashion victim-ness.

bazzachazza

I can't believe the number of people who are defending using headphones while driving. Next it will be OK to wear sunglasses at night !

kippy

Driving a car is one of the most dangerous things that ordinary people do every day. It is a heavy piece of machinery which, in he wrong hands has the potential to be fatal to those in the car an those outside it.
ANY type of distraction when driving a car, in my opinion, makes driving more hazardous, and some types of people are more easily distracted than others.
Car radios (the content of what is being broadcast as well as the decibel level) , a passenger having a deep conversation with the driver, a crying child in the back, and wearing earphones are all potential distractions for the driver (among others) which mean the driver may not be giving 100% to ensuring the car is kept on the road in a safe manner.
As such, which it's not possible to go around in a 100% distraction free environment (passengers, kids etc) it is essential that the driver try keep potential distractions to a minimum or within reasonable limits.
Driving around with headphones on with music playing, is just asking for trouble in my opinion whether it is legal or not.

dahamsta

Gay Byrne is in the house.

Fantastic Mr Hound

Apart from the opinions posted, does anyone actually know the legality of using headphones whilst driving a car. I appreciate that active operating the electronic device would or could be considered an offence but just listening?

On a side note I regularly listen to podcasts talk radio whilst driving. I usually keep it on a low volume. I consider this no different in affecting my awarness to external threats t(i.e screeching tyres or engine noises) that I may be alerted to by only listening to radio via the dsshboard.