Investigating The Dangers Of Texting While Driving

In today’s day and age, technology has drastically increased. People seem to rely on the use of their devices more than anything. Typically, whenever and wherever, everyone is engaged in some form of technology, cell phones in particular. From pagers, to car phones, to initial “flip-phones”, and now to smart-phones, people practically use up most of their daily time with these devices. Nowadays, a lot of people doesn’t even like to have phone conversations…they can deliver their entire thought through a simple text message. In some retrospect, that’s a very good thing; in others, it can be extremely crucial, especially when it comes to texting and driving. Texting and driving has been the leading cause of car accidents in the recent years,

Why are there so many accidents by teens and adults on highways and neighborhood streets because they were distracted by a phone call, email, or text message? I feel that texting while driving need be made illegal in all cities in every state because there are so many deaths as a result to texting while driving. After some research to find out how many states have passed a law to ban texting while driving shows that only thirty-nine states have the ban. Eleven states have a partial ban or no ban at all. After uncovering all the information needed to understand how many states have the ban, I really think our government should pass a law in every state to ban texting while driving. Until cell phones and texting came in the picture of our lives, there have been deaths or major injuries in accidents due to a distraction from the phone.

Don’t text and drive. Keep your phone out of your hand. There are about 1..3 million crashes involving phones per year. Texting while driving is dangerous because people overestimate their abilities.

Texting and driving is a large public concern. Texting while driving is large distraction for the driver. Distracted drivers play a significant contributor to motor vehicle accidents and fatalities. Texting is a large concern for any driver. A driver’s age can affect the experience of driving. Their experience or lack of experience while driving can less likely be found with handheld texting in more mature drivers. Impaired driving performance can be relative to handheld text entry by the driver is usually occurs in younger generations. No matter the age of the driver anyone can be distracted. Distraction from the handheld can also increased the brake response time, and the drivers variation in headway distance. Text entry using a speech-based

The average time it takes to read a text message is five seconds. At a velocity of 55 mph, that’s enough time to travel the interval of a full football field. The typical person may not realize it, but one out of every four accidents in the U.S. is caused by texting while driving (“Cell Phone”). Likewise, that is about half the percentage of accidents kindled by drunk driving. Driving preoccupied is injurious; furthermore, adding texting into the equation yields the greatest amount of accidents. One text could alternate a person’s entire life, or worse, cease their life. The danger of texting while driving is an outlandish issue that can be diminished by prohibiting its use and offering phone-disabling devices in vehicles.

Many people lose their lives each year. It is sad because these deaths can be 100 percent prevented. No text, email, or social media status is worth dying for. The modern conveniences of smartphones allow us to have the world at our fingertips for business, education, and entertainment, however they have also increased distraction levels, and reduced verbal communication. The distractions, illegal issues, and accidents are just a few reasons while people shouldn’t text and drive.

Imagine being at an intersection, and just when you think no one is there you proceed to step on the gas, and you get text from your friend saying “ Where you at bro?” thinking since it’s your friend you look down at your phone for a split second, but then you lose focus and let go of the wheel slightly and end up turning onto the other lane which put in a dangerous situation, luckily there wasn 't any cars coming. These are the type of disasters that texting while driving can cause.

The time I gave into outside pressure would be when I was about the age of 18. It was thanksgiving brake and me and my friends were already in need of a desperate brake from college. My friends suggested us to go down to Texas for the weekend, but for us to take my car instead since their car wasn’t in any good condition. At the age of 18 I already had my licenses of course but didn’t have much experience driving in different states, much less using the GPS on my phone. My friends were trying to convince me that wouldn’t be a problem that they would help me drive, as well help me with gas money and other expenses while down there. The problem was that I knew my parents wasn’t going to let me drive my car to a different state just us alone without supervision. My two friends wouldn’t have a problem because they lived on their own and had no one to tell them that they couldn’t go.

“There have been many studies that have linked texting while driving to be the cause of life-threatening accidents due to driver distraction”(Wikipedia Online). Texting while driving is a very dangerous risk that can lead to serious injury or death to you or others. Texting while driving is almost as dangerous as driving while intoxicated.

What I have seen over the past 9 years, several drivers texting and driving, in their personal car and even in their tractors/ trailers. They weave all over the road just trying to read their text messages. But as a result as we all know it’s not worth your life for the action of reading the text.

By that logic, the voluntary act of texting while driving is a controlled risk. Even those who admit to the risk of cell phone usage while driving, will initiate a call or respond to a text if they believe it is important (Nelson, 2009). Drivers even lower the risk of cell use when using a hand-free device (Nelson, 2009). Drivers who use their cell phones tend to believe that “the benefits of the technology are greater for them than for others” (Nelson, 2009). In addition, they go so far to believe that it “is safer for them to talk on the cellular phone while driving than for others to talk on cellular phone while driving” (Nelson, 2009). Rundmo (2004) agrees that novice young drivers do not “perceive themselves at greater risk for traffic accidents compared to other

Stephanie Hanes a journalist who has worked for renowned publications including USA Today is of view that, individual no matter how good he is at multitasking stands at the danger of being a cause of an accident. Research in 2014 conducted by McCartt, Kidd and Teoh funded by Highway Loss Data Institute, concluded that the accident rate in states that have imposed a ban on texting during driving are similar that in states with no such law. This is clear evidence that law is ineffective. While driving unforeseen events including an animal appearing from nowhere might occur; if driver attention is at his phone, slow response might put the driver and the animal in a dangerous situation. Texting while driving is an addiction that takes the driver

“A call or text isn’t worth taking a life,” said Oprah Winfrey during a campaign to increase awareness about the threats of driving and texting at the same time (“Texting while Driving,” 2010, p. 5). Thousands of people die annually due to car accidents in the United States. The saddest thing is that most of them are innocent victims of someone who decides to send text messages while driving a deadly weapon. Raising public awareness of how dangerous it is to drive distracted is a duty of American government. Also, measures need to be done throughout the country to decrease car accidents and the promote general welfare. Therefore, the United States should ban texting while driving because this behavior poses a grave threat to the safety of American citizens and the ban does not infringe American’s freedom.

Every parent’s worst nightmare is to receive a call saying, “that their child has been in a serious car accident and did not make it or possibly may not make it”. Take a moment and put yourself in a parent’s shoes and imagine that hole in your heart that will never be filled again that could have been avoided if you had just put the phone down. Now ask yourself, is texting and driving worth the heartache? Today, technology has become very popular over the many decades throughout the world, one in particular device being cell phones. However, cell phones are used today as a form of communication and gives you a way to reach out to the world rather that be tweeting, face booking, snapchatting, or simply just texting. Although, cell phones are a very great to have, they can be very dangerous as well. Studies show, according to teenage driving accident statics that 11 teens die every day because of texting while operating a vehicle.

A majority of accidents occur when people use their phones and become distracted while driving. Some people feel that telling someone they can’t use their phone while driving, is like telling them they can’t listen to the radio while driving. Using your phone while driving distracts you and takes away most of your attention for focusing on the road; Because of this, using cell phones while driving is very dangerous. The impacts and effects associated with texting and driving should be outlawed because of the danger that every single driver and passenger are at risk of. It can lead to the deaths of loved ones, and it can be just as dangerous as driving under the influence of alcohol.