Dangerous Consequences Of Texting While Driving

Distracted driving is the leading cause of car accidents in America, followed by speeding, then drunk driving. A study performed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTAS) found that 80% of car crashes were a direct result of distracted driving. There are three types of distractions for drivers: visual, cognitive, and manual. Cell phone usage whilst driving meets all three criteria for a distracted driver. When a person is using a phone they will take their eyes away from the road to look at the device (visual), they will think about the content of what they are looking at and take their mind off of the road (cognitive), and they will also take their hands off of the wheel to use the device (manual). There are many other reasons that can be attributed to distracted driving, like applying make-up or loud passengers in the car, but cell phone usage is becoming a rapidly growing concern, especially with younger drivers. The NHTAS identified that drivers under the age of 20 make up the highest proportion of distracted drivers that were involved in fatal crashes.

Distracted driving is when people concurrently operate a vehicle and engage in non-driving actions that could redirect their attention away from the task at hand, driving. The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that in 2009, 450,000 people were wounded and 5,500 people died in car accidents in which distracted driving was a component (Ferdinand, Menachemi, 2014). Although cell phones have become very popular in recent years, a vehicle is not the place for them because the driver could injure himself/herself or another person. They could also get into a car accident, or they could even be pulled over by the police because it is illegal in many states.

Drivers may think they can multitask while driving but that can cause others to be hurt in a matter of seconds when people look away from the road to check a phone. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administer reports that there are three types of driving distractions, which are visual, cognitive, and manual. The article “Distraction” discloses “To put it another way, a distraction is anything that takes your eyes off the road (visual distraction), your mind off the road (cognitive distraction), or your hands off the wheel (manual distraction).” These three distractions are very common when texting while driving because they require drivers to take away their attention from the road in order to respond to the text message. Drivers need to have one hand off the wheel when texting, which takes away from the manual aspect of driving. The visual distraction of driving are things that take the driver’s focus and eyes off the road, even for a split second which happens when people look down at their phones. Cognitive distractions keep their mind from focusing on the road during driving because their mind is on the text message. It does not take long to crash once a person takes their eyes off the road. According to the Daily Editorials article The Solution for Texting and Driving it references “At highway speeds, when you take your eyes off the road for five seconds your car travels more than

As mentioned, distracted driving is a rising epidemic caused by the rapid growth of smartphone addiction caused by social media. While operating a smartphone, drivers are physically & cognitively distracted. Multitasking is in impossible because the brain can only fixate on so much. Undeniably, young adults and teens are more likely to handle their phone without reservation while they are driving, creating a high risk for the effects of distraction. Despite the convenience of hands-free devices, it is not a solution and is a serious distraction that causes a delay in reaction time, consequently putting these and other drivers at risk for a crash.

Whether it is a five minute trip to the store, or it is a ten day trek across the country, there is nothing more important than your own life or the lives of anyone else in your vehicle. The highest cause of car accidents in the United States is distracted driving. The most dangerous form of distracted driving is texting while driving. That is why people should take action to prevent more casualties from occurring. Many things can be done to prevent people from texting while driving, such as installing devices in your vehicle that prevents text messages from being sent or received, or simply turning the phone off when you get in the car, along with many more effective and safe ways to save lives.

major risk for most motor vehicle crashes. Distractions include behavior causing the driver to take eyes off the road; any behavior causing the driver to take hands off the stirring wheel; and any behavior that takes the driver’s mind off task of driving the vehicle. Cell phone usage in any manner impacts the driver in any one of these ways, sometimes in all three ways. Teen drivers are primarily inexperienced drivers. If teen drivers use an electronic device, while driving as inexperienced as they are, they significantly increase their risk for an auto accident or any type of infraction of state driving laws such as speeding, erratic driving, running stop signs and stop lights,

Driving a motor vehicle is dangerous no matter what way you try and look at it. Each year it is increasing with fatal crashes. Not always, but most of the time, there is

Although all of things reasons listed are capable of causing a serious distraction, texting is one of the most important to try and steer away from. People form serious texting habits and don’t realize how dangerous their actions are until it happens to them or a loved one. Texting and driving puts one at a higher risk of being in a severe or life threatening car accident. Not only is it a higher risk, texting and driving makes you 3 times more likely to be involved in an accident. “In 2013 alone, 3,154 people were killed in a car accident due to distracted driving” (Distraction.gov). “Of all car accidents, 80% are caused due to the driver being distracted”(Distraction.gov). Many people aren’t aware of how focused they should be while driving, especially teens and young adults. “Drivers in their 20’s makeup 27% of the distracted drivers

Ever since the creation of portable technology, people have found a way to distract themselves from the responsibilities of safely operating a vehicle. The first distractions while driving a vehicle began with something as simple as the car radio. As technology progressed, the devices became more complex and required more attention to operate them. Recently, the biggest distraction for drivers is using smartphones to send text messages or to interact with others through social media. People fail to realize the dangers that are associated with distracted driving. The Department of Transportation reported 100,917 distracted driving crashes in 2014, resulting in 483 fatalities and more than 3,000 serious injuries. Compared with 2013, distracted-driving crashes in Texas have increased by 6 percent (“Cell Phone” 2008). The broad meaning of the phrase, distracted driving is any activity that could divert a driver’s attention while operating a vehicle. My paper will focus solely on distracted driving while using a handheld electronic device.

For many people being able to drive is like a dream come true especially for people in high school, but it could easily become a nightmare that is never woken up from. The use of technology has grown since the 1990 especially in the past few years, distracting us from things that are important. One of the biggest problems in the United States is texting and driving. Not only are drivers putting themselves in danger but they are also putting passengers in their car and other drivers on the road in danger. Drivers can be easily distracted, and even the smallest activity can shift the drivers attention off the road. Some of the few activities that contribute to being distracted while driving include using a cell phone, talking to a passenger, using the GPS, adjusting the radio and most importantly texting. Texting while driving uses visual, manual and cognitive attention and is one of the leading causes of accidents and deaths currently in the United States.

Drunk driving and texting while driving cause major distractions. Distracted driving is any activity that diverts attention from driving including talking or texting on your phone, eating, or drinking while driving. In 2015 alone, 3,477 people were killed, and 319,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted driving. This explains how text messages can cause a distraction while driving.

Driving while distracted. According to lawcore.com, “Every 12 minutes, one person dies because of a car accident. Every 14 seconds, a car accident results in an injured victim.” Every 12 minutes someone dies as a result of an accident, and if 25% to 50% of car accidents are due to a driver DWD, then, according to the same website, somewhere around three million deaths occur each year because of drivers using their phones while behind the wheel (lawcore.com). Driving while using the phone is only a distraction, even if

The biggest driving distraction today is texting and driving, almost everyone does it, even if it’s against the law. In the state of Kansas driving while texting is illegal, it can lead up to a fifty dollar fine. Also for anyone who doesn’t have a full driver's license, any cell phone use is prohibited while driving. Talking on the phone while driving might not seem that bad, but it can still distract the driver, especially when using only one hand to drive. “At any given daylight moment across America, approximately 660,000 drivers are using cell phones or manipulating electronic devices while driving, a number that has held steady since 2010.” (The Dangers of Distracted Driving) The number of people who think it’s okay to text and drive is enormous, they don’t seem to understand that it’s impossible to multitask. The brain can only focus on one task at a time, whenever people are texting they are not focused on driving. This leads to many accidents and puts everyone’s lives in danger if drivers are not aware of their surroundings they will cause an accident. It’s much safer to pull over to the side of the road or wait until the driver has reached their destination to text or make a call. Another way to help not text and

As mentioned, distracted driving is a rising epidemic caused by the rapid growth of smartphone addiction caused by social media. While operating a smartphone, drivers are physically & cognitively distracted. Multitasking is in impossible considering the brain can only fixate on a defined extent of information. Undeniably, young adults and teens are more likely to handle their phone without reservation while they are driving, creating a high risk for the effects of distraction. Despite the convenience of hands-free devices, it is not a solution and is a serious distraction that causes a delay in reaction time, consequently putting these and other drivers at risk for a crash.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), defines distracted driving as “any activity that diverts a drivers attention from the road, including talking or texting on the phone, eating, drinking, talking to people in your vehicle, fiddling with the stereo, entertainment or navigation system, or anything that takes your attention away from the task of safe driving.” Cell phones have become the biggest distractions while driving especially for teenager/young adults. When young drivers get a text there is an immediate urge to look at it right then. No matter what the driving conditions are, pouring down rain or stuck in traffic young drivers feel that they have to look at that text immediately. According to the NHTSA texting causes the most distractions while driving. The NHTSA data says “sending or reading a text takes your eyes off the road for five seconds. At fifty-five mph, it is like driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed.” The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety states that “adult’s drivers are by far the likeliest age group to admit to