Argumentative Essay: Banning Texting And Driving

Statistics show that texting while driving is on the rise. In a published article, “Trends in Fatalities From Distracted Driving in the United States”, from National Center for Biotechnology Information, 2005 to 2008 car accidents involving a use of a cellular device increased by 28 percent, while drunk driving fatalities declined by 35 percent. In today’s world, many people are becoming attached to their phone, and they cannot put it down for 30 minutes. A study completed by Pew Research Center showed that 59 percent of young adults ranging from 18 to 34 years old are the most likely to text and

We all are probably aware that texting and talking on the phone is a distraction to all drivers and can be very dangerous. Also, we all know there are many other distractions besides texting and driving, and any type of technology can cause a driver to be distracted. Forty-one percent of all drivers use their hands to text in the car while driving, according to Greg Gardner (52). It can cause people to forget about pedestrians or their surrounding areas. People who are distracted often aren’t focused and don’t have both hands on the wheel. According to Bryan Wilson, people may say that cell phones are easy to be pointed out as a problem, but statistics show the damage cell phones can do to a person while they are driving (6). According to Simon Usborne, time spent not looking at the road while talking on the phone is 15% of the time (68). Also, while texting and driving the time spent not looking at the road is 30% of the time (Usborne 69). As technology improves more and more people may feel the need to use their cell phones while driving. According to Melissa Healy, cell phone use can be as dangerous as drunk driving (42). Tests should be done to compare the various ways of sober people under the influence driving also to compare the impact of texting and driving. This would give us a better understanding of just how dangerous driving and being on our phone really is.

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.

In a local news station called KCTV5 they did a report on an accident caused by texting and driving and this is what happened, “A 16-year-old girl has been charged with manslaughter, assault and texting while driving in connection with a September 2011 fatality collision. It's a moment the young driver can never take back, and one prosecutors said could have been avoided if she'd just put down her phone.” This is just plain sad that a 16 year old girl’s life just ruined because she choose to text and drive. Texting and driving is a humongous debate in our society because of how many people do it. People die due to texting and driving every day. people can go to jail for texting and driving and you can hurt other people. Texting and driving is dangerous and should be enforced.

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

According to texting and driving statistics, every year, around 330,000 people die every year from texting and driving. This is around half of all the people who pick up their phones in the first place. Being on your phone draws your attention from the road, to your phone. Doisomething.org states, “When you text and drive you are 23 times more likely to get into a crash.” All it takes is a simple act of not watching the road. Being unaware while driving can put you, and other's lives at risk or injury or even death. This can affect your future, others around you, your friends, and your family. Texting and driving is a very big deal. Don't Text Drive states “5 seconds is the minimal amount of time a driver takes their eyes off the road. If you are traveling at 55 miles an hour, this would equal the length of a football field of not

Imagine being blindfolded for the length of a football field while driving. This would not feel very safe, right? Well, five second is the average time your eyes are off the road while sending or reading a text. When traveling at 55 mph, that is enough time to cover the length of a football field. Plus, the average amount of time it takes to get into a crash is only three seconds. 11% of all drivers under 20 that were involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted. This age group has the largest population of distracted drivers. It is not just teens, adults are also breaking the law while driving. 49% of adults say they have been passengers in a car when the driver was sending or reading texts on their cell phone. Reaching for a phone, dialing, texting and other uses of portable devices increases the risk of getting into a crash by three times. As of 2011, about 60% of drivers use cell phones while driving. There is obviously a huge chance of getting into a wreck, whether you are the one texting or not. It is not just the decision to not text and drive, but the decision to refuse to get in a car where the driver has their cell phone

A simple glance of a text on a cell phone can cause dangerous circumstances to oneself and to others. During this circumstance, a person’s mental state is changed. “The average text takes about five second to send. Traveling at 55 mph, that’s like going the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed,” (Held). The mindset of a person who is texting while driving are not realizing that they are driving but are just thinking about that text that they’ve received. They’re eyes are off the road and on their phone which automatically causes immediate situations. Along with their eyes not on the road, their hands are no longer on the wheel but on the keypad of their device. In the fact of these mental states of a driver, consequences are quickly met. Consequences include jail time, fines and fees similar to drinking and driving. “The severity of punishments increases

In a 2009 study, VTTI found that, “Five seconds is the average time your eyes are off the road while texting. When traveling at 55mph, that's enough time to cover the length of a football field…blindfolded” (Data). Drivers may encounter any number of unexpected hazards in those five seconds, resulting in a car accident, serious injury, or death, but still people use their phones dangerously. Distracted driving due to cell phone use is widely practiced by all ages of drivers, many of whom do not take warnings seriously. Automakers are teaming up with cell phone companies to address the problem, but aren’t seeing much success. There are three strategies that should be used to minimize the habit of texting

Do you ever just sit and think about why everything be so high? Or just be chatting with one of your friends, and one out the bunch just says” I’m tired of taxes going up”. Well car wrecks, injury, and jail time is one of the reasons why our tariffs be high. Every day in the United States somebody has been killed from a distracted driver. One of the distracted activities people do is texting while driving. I think this is extremely dangerous because people who are doing this takes their attention off the road, just to send a text. Which increases the chance that the driver can lose the control of the vehicle, and could cause a crash or even in a worst case could kill other people. When a person is texting, she/he is thinking about other things besides concentrating on driving. Also it could make the driver lose control of the car and slow her/his brain’s reaction time in case of a potential accident. (“Texting and Driving Essay by Leticia Z.” Carpey Law, www.carpeylaw.com/blog/texting-driving-scholarship-essay-leticia-perez-zamora/.) The truth is that most American adults pay federal taxes. The data point that Drudge has mangled here is that only about 122 million Americans pay federal personal income tax—and most who don't pay other federal taxes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/joshbarro/2012/04/17/everything-about-this-drudge-headline-is-wrong/#2d5a5aaf27b2

The advent of cellphones has, in many ways, made life easier for people in Birmingham, and elsewhere. For drivers, however, cellphones can be a major distraction. At any given time during daylight hours, about 660,000 people across the U.S. are using cellphones or other electronic devices while they are driving, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Using cellphones while driving, particularly to read or send text messages, can impact people’s ability to drive safely, and thus result in serious motor vehicle collisions.

Today, texting while driving out numbers 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 23 times more likely to wreck if you are texting. Texting while driving is equal to driving bind for 5 seconds each text. Out of the worlds’ population of over 7 billion, at any given moment all over the world, over 800,000 drivers are texting. Drivers think they can handle looking away for a second to reply, or read a message. By doing this you are decreasing your break reaction time by 18% (national). “The concentration needed for safe driving makes texting safely at the same time impossible” (Bratsis 70). According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, (C.D.C.)

Millions of people around the world have seen the messages that warn against texting and driving. Someone glances down at his or her phone for five seconds and a catastrophic event takes place because of that. These messages are often pretty powerful and leave the viewer with some kind of thought about what they have just seen. Then if these messages are so powerful and thought provoking, why are so many people killed in accidents involving texting and driving every day? Why do people, especially teens, seem to disregard these powerful messages concerning their life or death? In just five seconds, a car can travel the distance of a football field if it is going fifty five miles per hour. Many teens are aware that texting and driving can be really dangerous. Why would someone want to jeopardize his or her life if they know how dangerous texting and driving is?

The high rise in technology has not only impacted our society both positively and negatively. The increase in our digital devices has made us immune to technology. The power of having the world in the palm of our hand has transformed the way we live of life. We now have easy access to contact anyone in the world whenever we want. With families and friends having constant communication with one another some people do not know when it is a good time to put the phone down. The main issue with texting and driving are the sudden deaths that have increased in the past few years. With advertisements increasing and billboards up all over town, people will assume that texting a driving is dangerous but people don't understand. Theory of reasoned assumes that people make rational decisions with all the information available to them, but this is not always the case.

September 16th 2010, Kenia Washington was waiting at her house in virginia planning to go to a party with her friend Ria. Around 9:22 PM Kenia texted Ria asking if she was still coming, about 20 seconds later the little typing bubbles on her phone popped up but there was never a response. Three days later Ria died of head trauma due to an accident caused by the use of her cell phone while driving. 1.6 million accidents happen on average each year due to cell phones. The results don't lie, many people are affected by texting and driving related accidents often. Around 33,000 are injured do to texting and driving accidents each year and those are just the ones who escape with their lives. It's estimated around 11 teens die in the U.S. alone each day due to texting and driving, and thats teens alone. This ad campaign represents the argument on texting and driving trying to raise awareness of its negative effects. One way you can see this is in the first ad in our campaign. This ad makes you think and conveys the message that no text is worth it while driving. Are second ad, shows a car that is made to look like a phone, and just as you would tap on your phone you would wreck the car. This implies that using your phone while driving can wreck your car. In our third ad, it shows a man looking at his phone while driving but in big bold letters covering his face it says “Don't let texting blind you” . This supports the idea that texting is bad on the fact if your looking at your