Distracted Driving : The True Dangers Of Distracted Driving

Every day there are many that are killed from texting and driving. So many people get injured or even killed because of texting and driving. Several people are addicted to their phones, especially teens. Teens are obsessed with their phones, they are always waiting for some to text them back. Texting and driving is a distraction that everyone should avoid because it can result in injury or death to oneself or others. This may result in property damage, and the probability for one to receive legal consequences.

In this article “Distracted Driving”, many distractions are mentioned other than just cell phone usage, such as changing the radio station or driving with kids in the back seat. It is stated that the dangers from distracted driving are because of the decrease in brain function and inability to pay full attention to the road. These practices lead to wrecks and in many cases death.

According to Ashley Gaddis from Counterpoint, “From 1999 to 2008, nearly fifty-two thousand people were killed in car crashes caused by distracted drivers” (n.pag.). Distracted driving started when technology became mobile and handheld. Many people have died and gotten injured from people not paying attention to the road. This problem has been growing as technology advances. Distracted driving is a big problem and there needs to be stronger penalties and laws in place to deter people from distracted driving.

Distracted driving in America is not a trivial issue in today's society. On average, eight people are killed and one thousand one hundred sixty one people are injured due to accidents involving distracted drivers, particularly due to texting. Distracted driving is a huge issue in our society. The risks are great and lead to unfathomable results. Distracted driving has also taken such a big toll on our Nation, that laws have been put in place in hopes of preventing distracted driving.

One sunny day on a Houston road, the driver of a pickup truck collided with a church minibus. 13 people died, and the driver admitted he was texting and driving. Yet this happens very often. Over 330,000 car accidents happened from texting while driving in 2015. Distracted driving is very risky, because attention is drawn away from the road,

Distracted driving has been the most recent cause of accidents on the road presently. Of course there are many other reasons why drivers get into accidents, but it is mainly because they get distracted. Police in El Cerrito, California even gave more than 600 citations in April to drivers for distracted driving violations (“El Cerrito”).Also,“nearly 6,000 people were killed and a half-million injured last year in the U.S. due to drivers being distracted”(“Distracted”).Distracted driving today causes many accidents through the use of technology, eating and drinking, and children in the backseat.

All humans have their own rights to communicate with other people in any situations. Some people talk to their close friends, families, or people who live far from them. In this century, there have been an invention that make it easier for people to communicate, even with the people who live across the ocean. This invention is called cellphone. As the other inventions would be, it has affected people who are using it; moreover, they use it in every chance they have to look at the cellphone. However, this invention has changed people in the present day. “Distracted driving is a dangerous epidemic on America’s roadways. In 2013, 3,154 were killed in distracted driving crashes” (Distraction.gov). The distraction that it meant includes texting or using a cellphone, talking to passengers, eating and drinking, adjusting a radio, or watching videos.

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

"Distracted driving is not only texting, it can be a combination of many things. Anytime you take your focus off the road you are considered a distracted driver"(Teddi Dineley). "Each time you take your focus off the road, just for a second, you’re putting your life and the lives of others in danger" (Teddi Dineley). As stated in the article, “Distracted Driving: Stay Focused When on the Road,” written by Teddi Dineley Johnson, driving a car is a very complex task.

The number of people of people wounded or killed in distracted driving accidents due to cell phone use. What is crazy is that everyone is aware of the danger of this cell phone use, but for many, especially young adults, the constant need to check their cell phone to respond to a text, email, call, or to use the internet, outweighs the possible consequences. Some reasons might be that they feel like they can handle both or feel like a hands-free call isn’t dangerous, but the truth is that all forms of cell phone use while driving are dangerous and should not be allowed. Since these accidents account for % of distracted driving accidents, I want to talk a little about what distracted driving is, the three main types, and how they apply to each type of cell phone use.

“ Distracted driving kills” ( Distracted driving7). Distracted driving affects people of all ages but, “ our youngest and most inexperienced drivers are most at risk” ( Distracted driving7). This happens as soon as a person enters their vehicle and start to drive. Their eyes begin to go off the road which soon causes a head to head collision. Later on as technology improves and advances, cell phones have become the most common type of distracted driving such as eating or drinking or watching videos on their phone for an example, “ because text messaging requires visual, manual and conductive attention from the driver, it is by far the most alarm distraction” (Distracted driving 5). This shows that many are risking their life and others around

In this essay it will talk about what distracted driving is and the dangers of distracted driving. Distracted driving is the act of driving while enabling yourself into other activities and not paying attention to the road or others around you. Since cars have been invented distracted driving has been around in society. People say that distracted driving is the new drunk driving, it is actually supposably more dangerous the drinking and driving. Also they say the more a distracted driver drives with the distraction the more they get comfortable with it, then the more it happens. It is hard to prevent distracted driving since it is temporary, they usually do the distraction for a short period of time then put it away. Distracted driving is very selfish and wrong, people who are distracted drivers pretty much are telling everyone else on the road that them and their wants are more important than their own life or other drivers on the road’s life. Distracted driving can affect any age groups, but typically it is the younger age groups between the ages of fifteen to twenty-nine. Truth is though everyone some point in time in their life has been a distracted driver. Ten percent of all drivers fifteen to nineteen are involved in fatal crashes revolved around distractions. There are many ways you can get distracted while driving such as cognitive distractions, which is when your mind is not focused on driving, then there is visual distractions which is when you the driver is looking at anything besides the road, auditory, which is like when your music is too loud or responding to a ringing device, lastly the final type of distraction is manual distraction which is when you take one or both of your hands off the wheel for any specific reason. Some things that are considered distracted driving are smoking, eating or drinking, adjusting your radio or climate settings, adjusting seat belts or mirrors, talking to your passengers, using an electrical device such as a GPS or a cell phone, also just getting lost in your own thought. Distracted driving is one of the leading causes of deaths, also it is usually caused by cell phone use. Eleven teens die every day as a result of texting while driving. Kansas is was of the

Every day in the United States around one out of ten people are killed by distracted drivers, and around 1500 are injured in some way in crashes by these irresponsible, distracted drivers. One of the most dangerous, distracting activities that many people do is texting while driving. It is extremely dangerous because people who do this are putting more attention in texting, and they take their eyes off the road while they are driving, 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. This is very dangerous because it could make the driver lose

Distracted driving is second on the list and is expected to rise in years to come (Wilson &Stimpson, 2010). In 2008, one in every six fatal crashes was a result of distracted driving. Studies showed that drivers who text and drive were 23 times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash (Wilson &Stimpson, 2010). Approximately 660,000 drivers are manipulating some kind of electronic device or cell phone while driving on U.S. highways (Wilson &Stimpson, 2010). In 2012, 3328 fatalities and 421,000 injuries were a result of this hazardous behavior (Wilson &Stimpson,

Distracting driving is a common occurrence with modern day drivers. Due to technological advances making electronics so easy to use on the go, many find themselves spending more time looking at their cell phone or navigation system than they do looking at the road. According to the NHTSA, distracted driving claimed the lives of 3,477 people in 2015 alone. Texting and driving is a common distraction, especially when it comes to the younger generation of drivers. Young drivers are oblivious to the dangers of what seems like such a harmless act. Studies have shown that one 1 in 4 accidents are caused by texting and driving. The number of people injured from distracted drivers in 2015 was 391,000. Over half of the nation’s car accidents are a result of texting and driving. Whereas drinking and driving may kill more people, the leading cause of car accidents is in fact texting and driving.