Paola Bojorquez Pro. Wenzell English 100 21 September 2016 Essay #1 Texting while driving It’s time to stop texting while driving. Most of the accidents are accused of distracted driving and most of the distractions are most of the time caused by cell phones. However, some opponents feel that creating a law against cell phone use infringes their personal rights. Other people assume that prohibiting from someone from using their cell phone is the same thing in just like telling someone that they can't adjust their radio or chat with someone else in the car. However, using a cell phone, whether you are texting or talking, while driving can be extremely dangerous; That should be made illegal in the fact that it is very hazardous to …show more content…
Nowadays, texting while behind the wheel forgets about the amount of drunk driving according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Texting while driving is six times more likely to cause a wreck than drunk driving. You are approximately 23 times more likely to wreck if you are texting. Texting while driving is equal to driving blind for 5 seconds each text and through those 5 seconds, you can commit an accident or even kill a person. Being familiar with changes in technology with cell phones and texting, the newer phones make it even easier today to text than it did 10 years ago. Today some phones have built-in keyboards, touchscreen keyboards, and phones without that are self-aware built in to try to figure out the word based on the spelling so once the correct word comes up you can just touch it and it will be right there for you in the text without you having you spell the word correctly or not. According to kelly (2012), about “six billion messages are sent a day and over 2.2 trillion in the US, (Kelly, 2012). The worst violators are high school seniors, 58% have said they have texted while they were driving within the month before the study (Bratsis,2013).” That is a lot of teens that are texting nowadays. The majority of teenagers argue that “texting and driving is a “common” thing to do.” but when not only their lives but also other
Being able to drive is a dream come true, that can easily become a nightmare that you are never wake up from. The state of Florida is trying to make drivers aware of the dangers that come with distracted driving. Texting and driving is one of the biggest problems America is facing at the moment. Many people, especially teenagers, are dying from distractive driving. The state of Florida decided that they wanted to help with this problem and made it illegal to text and drive. They have also put up billboards all over the state to remind drivers about the law and the consequences of distractive driving. Not only could you be harming yourself but you could also harm others if you decide to text and drive. Do us all a favor and put your
Texting while driving puts everyone in danger because it takes your attention away from the task of driving. According to the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) in 2015 there were 3,477 deaths and another 391,000 injuries caused by distracted driving in the United States, and that’s just in one year. While this
According to Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, in 2013, 3,154 people were killed in a car crash involving a distracted driver, and 9,967 people were killed in car crashes involving alcohol. Texting and drinking while driving are both dangerous. Both actions while behind the wheel can cause a driver to lose focus of the road, both also have many legal consequences; however, in today’s world texting is becoming more common.
Nearly 6,000 people are killed connecting to the outcome of cell phone use while driving, according to Edmunds.com (7). Texting and talking on the phone throughout the time that a person is driving can have deadly consequences, but people still don’t seem to want to give up risking their life. There are many issues that can happen while on the road related to the usage of cell phones. It is important to stop people from looking at their phones while driving, because it is extremely distracting and not safe. Even hands free devices are not as safe as they seem to be. There have to be consequences for people using their cell phones while driving in order to improve the people’s safety. According to Edmunds.com, cell phones are known as distractions everywhere in the world and have created several concerns to several countries (9).
Although people of all age-ranges use their smartphone device daily, people are more concerned of those who are younger. Adults born before the 2000s were raised in a world and society that was not technology based, so seeing the first generation to experience it can be unsettling. It is quite evident that almost every teen has a smartphone, and will use it at any given opportunity. The problem is teenagers actually use it anytime, even if the time is not appropriate. Many teens from the ages sixteen through eighteen are receiving their driver's license, but have a hard time not using smartphones while driving. This causes great dangers to everyone else on the roads. In some cases, people have been in accidents caused by people texting while driving. Unfortunately, many individuals have lost their lives because of someone texting while driving. In Turkle's’ piece “Growing up Tethered” she includes student testimonials such as Roman’s. “Roman, eighteen, admits that he texts while driving and he is not going to stop. ‘I know I should, but it’s not going to happen. If I get a Facebook message or something posted on my wall . . . I have to see it. I have to’” (Turkle 236). Though teenagers are very aware of circumstances when texting while driving, that still does not stop them from doing so. The constant “need” of being connected with friends and others on social media is what keeps teenagers from not
Cell phones have become an essential part of many peoples’ lives as they are one of the main sources of communication. People are able to complete many tasks using their phones, such as making phone calls, sending and receiving e-mails, text messaging, and even snapping photos. Cell phones are not only beneficial, but they are impactful in many ways. As many positive uses there are for cell phones, cell phone usage can be undoubtedly precarious while driving. Cell phone usage while driving is many times done irresponsibly and can put the driver at risk of getting injured. In addition to the driver getting injured, innocent pedestrians could also potentially lose their lives or be crippled due to a texting person who was driving at the same time. According to The Federal Communications Commission, “over 8 people are killed and approximately 1,161 are injured daily in incidents reported as distraction-affected crashes in the United States.” Texting while driving has become the number one distraction of drivers and main cause of car crashes. These crashes could result in hundreds of thousands of people either losing their lives or experiencing life-changing injuries. Although cell phone usage is an effective way to communicate with others and to complete certain tasks, it has become problematic for drivers in recent years as it increased the risk of injury and death while driving. For these reasons, texting while driving should be illegal and punishable by law.
Not only is texting while behind the wheel bad enough itself, many people compare the danger level to drunk driving. Driving while intoxicated at the same time is illegal, just as some believe texting while driving should be as well. Larry Copeland states that after a study was conducted at The University of Utah, it showed that driving with a blood-alcohol content of 0.08% is equal to texting and driving. If people were more aware of how closely related texting while driving and drunk driving are, it would help to inform all drivers on safety behind the wheel. Not only are distracted drivers harming themselves, yet they are putting every other driver on the road in the same dangerous position without realizing it.
Secondly texting while driving can put a loved one at risk. Texting while driving can put you and your passenger at risk. If you were to get in a accident because of texting and driving, you and your passenger can get hurt. In an article called 10 Programmatic Reason´s that will make you stop texting and driving right now it said ¨in
Automobile crashes as a result of texting while driving is an epidemic that has taken over the nation in the past years. In today’s society, people have become more and more dependent on technology as everyday uses. How many can honestly say that they have text and driven? How many have had to swerve, stop on the brakes or almost gotten into an accident because of it? Texting while driving is the most common thing that almost everyone has done or seen. The main issue and threat is that people think they can safely type on their phone while driving; while others simply do not think there is any real danger with that act. Today, it is all about convenience; but the cost for this convenience can be very deadly. Studies show that any
One out four car crashes are caused by texting and driving. It has been proven that 94% of all teens acknowledge and agree that texting and driving is a very dangerous thing. However 32% admit to doing it anyway. www.edgarsnyder.com states, “660,000 drivers are attempting to use their phones while behind the wheel of an automobile.” This is an outrageously large number of people. This number needs to be reduced. “In a split second you could ruin your future, injure or kill others, and tear a hole in the heart of everyone who loves you. -50 reasons not to text and drive-”. Texting and driving should not be permitted on the road.
“Text messaging … had the longest duration of eyes-off-road time of 4.6 seconds at a six second interval. This equates to a driver traveling the length of a football field at 55 miles per hour without looking at the roadway.” This statement was made by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute when they did a texting while driving study (“Skip Menu”). Texting while driving has become a large problem in the United States and it is growing. There are about 1,600,000 accidents per year as a result of texting while driving. Texting while driving has become a bigger problem for teenagers than drinking while intoxicated. In an article Delthia Ricks wrote for Newsday, she says:
Of the many effects that texting while driving has on an individual, the most profound impact is death and the toll it takes on close relatives.In Virginia, “a five month old baby,Tristan Schulz, was killed because of a driver that had his phone in his hand and got distracted” (A Baby Is Dead in Virginia. Now Will the State Do Something about Texting While Driving?” TWP).Avoidable deaths like this happen constantly due to the careless use of cellular devices on much traveled highways/roads.So many more lives could have been spared if only that one driver had simply chosen to wait until they were no longer driving.Another tragedy that resulted from texting while driving was the loss of Stephanie Phills,37,and 26, Heather Hurd’s life when a truck driver “reaching for his hand-held device to text his office,rammed into traffic at a stop light” (Bridget, and Lebovich N.p., n.d. Web)The truck driver stop to consider the
Texting while driving is a controversial subject. The vast majority of people feel that texting while driving should be illegal. Most people also feel that legal actions need to take place to stop this behavior. However, I’m part of the small majority that disagrees with the main point of view. I believe that texting while driving shouldn’t be illegal and that states that have made it illegal need to repeal those laws. Texting while driving isn’t the true problem. The true problem is that people get distracted easily. So I believe that making texting while driving illegal doesn’t even solve the problem. Another reason why it shouldn’t be illegal is that people don’t follow laws as it is, and this can cause even more problems. Texting while driving should be the driver’s choice, not the government's choice.
Texting while driving takes away the one thing that absolutely everyone counts on while behind the wheel, vision. No matter where the phone is placed, whether it is on the dash board or on the steering wheel, one’s eyes are not where they need to be. People’s eyes are supposed to be on the road at all times. Texting takes that away and it doesn’t matter how quick someone thinks they are, there is always a possibility. Just for that split second of reading a message that is so important, a crash could happen. Eyes are the most important thing needed when driving and when not on the road a lot of harm can be caused.
Texting and driving can also be dangerous because people could die. Not only that texting and driving causes distraction to where it increases the chances of you dying or getting into car accidents. On https://www.dmv.org/distracted-driving/texting-and-driving.php it says, “26% of all car crashes in 2014 involved cell phone use. At least 9 people are killed every day because of a distracted driver. More than 1,000 people are injured every day due to a distracted driver. In 2015 42% of teens say they have texted while driving—and