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    [in 2013, I leased a vehicle that had a touchscreen.  In 2016, I requested   
   one that had the more "spartan" controls.  They are a lot less distracting,   
   and are a lot less likely to malfunction!  -- Mike]   
      
   Shock, horror! In-car touchscreens are way more distracting than we first   
   thought, says new study   
      
   Date:   
   Mon, 22 Dec 2025 13:54:11 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   New research suggests that using a touchscreen when behind the wheel makes    
   you a pretty terrible driver.   
      
   FULL STORY   
      
   The results of a new study by the University of Washington (UW) and Toyota   
   Research Institute have provided pretty daming evidence against the use of   
   large, distracting touchscreens when driving a vehicle.    
      
   Rather eloquently titled Touchscreens in Motion: Quantifying the Impact of   
   Cognitive Load on Distracted Drivers, the study saw 16 participants placed in   
   ultra-realistic high-fidelity driving simulators while researchers tracked    
   eye and hand movements, pupil dilation, and skin conductivity.    
      
   Participants were asked to drive around a typical urban environment and then   
   interact with various side-tasks presented on the touchscreen ; nothing    
   major, simply adjusting car functionality or changing the radio station.    
      
   Their ability to both drive and their accuracy when interacting with the   
   touchscreen were measured.    
      
   According to Car Scoops , the researchers measured a mix of driver    
   performance metrics and physiological markers, from eye movements, index   
   finger tracking and steering consistency to reaction time and stress signals.   
   This helped them build a better picture of stress and cognitive load on the   
   human in the driving seat.    
      
   As you would expect, the results werent pretty for those peddling an    
   increased reliance on touchscreens over physical buttons. Firstly, pointing   
   accuracy on said touchscreen and the speed of use were reduced by more than   
   58% when compared to non-driving conditions.    
      
   Already, this reveals that us humans struggle to physically interact with a   
   touchscreen when busy processing whats going on out of the windscreen of a   
   moving vehicle. This then requires the driver to apply more focus to tapping   
   digital menu screens.    
      
   As a result, the study revealed that lane deviation increased by over 40%    
   once touchscreen interaction was introduced. The vicious cycle then    
   continues.   
      
   Bring back buttons   
      
   We have already covered this extensively , but some manufacturers are   
   reintroducing physical buttons for often-used features in a vehicle. This is,   
   in part, a reaction to consumer backlash, but also because some of the    
   leading safety bodies will penalize automakers for an over-reliance on   
   touchscreens in the future.    
      
   I strongly believe that things like volume control, lighting, window   
   de-misters and windscreen wipers should all be mapped to physical buttons    
   that can be committed to muscle memory after a few uses.    
      
   This means drivers dont have to go hunting through often hyper-sensitive   
   touchscreens to activate very basic functionality. Getting stuck in a loop of   
   mis-tapping, shuffling through incorrect menus or activating the wrong   
   function is frustrating but also very dangerous.    
      
   The research conducted by the University of Washington (UW) and Toyota   
   Research Institute suggests automakers look to reduce the number of menus   
   required to perform a function, with hard-buttons implemented that can be   
   customized to jump to the most used items.    
      
   Otherwise, it states that future systems should get smarter and adapt when it   
   detects the driver is becoming more distracted, by enlarging buttons or   
   limiting some functions when it deems things are becoming unsafe.    
      
   Unfortunately, it's simply much cheaper for modern automakers to commit   
   absolutely everything to a touchscreen and then rely on software updates to   
   improve things. Not only are we now faced with completely homogenous care   
   interiors, but also the prospect of an increasingly button-free future.    
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/vehicle-tech/hybrid-electric-vehicles/shock-horror-i   
   n-car-touchscreens-are-way-more-distracting-than-we-first-thought-says-new-stu   
   dy   
      
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