VIDEO: Driving on the phone - what effect does it have?

Earlier this week I spent an afternoon pressing the button on a pelican crossing repeatedly and throwing a football out in front of cars... no I wasn't having a breakdown, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Road Safety Partnership were putting on a press event with Alconbury Driving Centre to demonstrate the dangers of driving whilst on the phone.

Reporters took turns negotiating a course on Alconbury airfield, in a dual-controlled car with instructor Paul Staple, whilst talking or texting on their mobile phone. Road Safety Officers from Cambridgeshire and Peterborough set up a series of scenarios, including lights changing as the driver approached and a ball bouncing out in front of them, to see how the reporters reacted.

Here's how Heart Cambridgeshire reporter Tom Horn got on...

You can also read Cambridge News' Jennie Baker's experience.

The Facts

• Last year Cambridgeshire Police reported 2,535 drivers were caught using a mobile phone while driving, in 2011 that figure was 2,431.
• You are four times more likely to crash if you use a mobile phone while you are driving.
• If caught using a hand-held mobile phone behind the wheel, you will receive a £60 fine and three penalty points on your licence.
• The punishments for careless or dangerous driving while using a phone include up to two years in prison.
• Using a smartphone for social networking slows a driver’s reaction times by 37.6 per cent.
• Reaction times are slowed by 37.4 per cent by texting.
• Cannabis slows reaction times by 21 per cent.
• The reaction times of a driver with alcohol levels at the legal limit are slowed by 12.5 per cent.