Texting drivers more dangerous than drunks

Sending text messages from your mobile phone while driving is more dangerous than climbing behind the wheel under the influence of drink or drugs, a study by Britain's Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) has found.

The reaction times of people texting as they drove fell by 35 per cent, while those who had consumed the legal limit of alcohol, or taken cannabis, fell by 21 per cent and 12 per cent respectively, according to the study.

The study, which was commissioned by motoring group RAC Foundation, also found that the ability to stay in lanes or maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front was worse than drivers under the influence of cannabis.

"This research demonstrates how dangerous it is to drive and text," TRL Senior Human Factors Researcher Nick Reed said in a statement.

He said drivers who texted were distracted by taking their hand off the wheel to use their phone, by trying to read small text on the phone display and by thinking about how to write their message.

"This combination of factors resulted in the impairments to reaction time and vehicle control that place the driver at a greater risk than having consumed alcohol to the legal limit for driving," Reed told Reuters.