Hundreds of teenagers and adults across the nation reach for their phones and decide to text while driving. They are making the decision that at that moment a text message is more important than their lives A texting driver is 23 times more likely to get in a crash where as a drunk driver is 13 times more likely to get into a crash. Texting while driving delays reaction time, increases risk of serious injury, and brain power is decreased by 40 percent. Something as simple as a text message can decrease your reaction time. Laboratory simulation studies generally concur that using a cell phone does slow reaction times and degrades tracking abilities.
With the rise in cellular phone use, texting while driving has become a frequent activity. The dangers of texting while driving have led many states to ban the activity while behind the wheel. However, De Soto argues that in order for laws to be effective,
Texting while driving has become a major cause of accidents, especially among young drivers. When texting, you are too focused on your conversation instead of the road. This not only puts the driver of the vehicle is harms way; it creates an unsafe environment for all those in and around the automobile. Is a text message really that important? I highly believe that texting while driving should be illegal.
Copeland said, “The lives of innocent people are being taken every day due to a simple distraction”. According to the National Safety Council, there are 1600000 car accidents per year and, 11 teen’s death per day every day are caused by drivers distracted by texting while driving, and . This number adds up to nearly 25% of all car accidents. Also, according to some studies, in 2011, at least 23% of auto collisions in 2011 involved cell phones, which is adds up to almost 1.3 million car accidents. Car accidents are four times more likely to result from take place from drivers being distracted by texting than other causes.
When texting while driving is takes our eyes off the road for at least 5 seconds or more which, if we think about it anything can happen in 5 seconds behind the wheel. About 77% of people can say that they are a pro at texting while driving, which is obviously not the case because 23% of accidents are caused by texting. About 1,600,000 accidents happen each year according to the National Safety Council. Teens have admitted to texting while driving, and say it’s easy, but did you know that the majority of teens who text while driving spend the most time of typing the message in the other lane. This bad habit does not help the young kids that ride in the car with their parents because the majority of parents either text or talk on the phone while driving with their children in the vehicle.
Texting and talking on the phone can be dangerous and affect your driving by causing you to concentrate on the person you are talking to rather than the road. Not only does it make you more unaware of the road mentally but if you do not have a Bluetooth headset or speaker phone then you will only have one free hand to drive with. If you are fully engaged in a conversation your emotions can change from one topic to another. It is never safe to drive while being upset about something. If you are fighting our having an important conversation while texting or talking on the phone make sure to pull over and wait till it is over.
One day a person was just being an average teen and goofing off, he was texting on his cell phone while driving about this cute girl he saw in class and the next minute… dead, all because he didn’t look at the road. He isn’t alone. Every year 2600 people are killed and 12,000 have serious injuries due to accidents involving cell phone use in the car. This does not just include the drivers themselves but harmless pedestrians as well. Cell phone usage and texting while driving is growing tremendously in the United States.
A large portion of those accidents happen when one vehicle hits a wall, tree, or even slides off the side of the road, this shows that the cause is reckless driving. Someone showing off for their friend, sending and reading text messages on their phone, or just not paying attention to the road. A lot of teens like to show off when they drive, that's why they end up in a accident. There are many different solutions for this problem, but only a few could be realistic and actually work out. There are many people who think the driving age should be raised to 21, they say that people who start driving at 21 are less likely to be involved in crashes.
Cell Phones and Driving: Teenagers on the road, as it is, pose an extremely huge risk. However teenagers on the road with cellular devices, now that is suicide, unsafe, contingent, and problematic. Another name for this issue is called “Distracted Driving”. Distracted driving (according to distraction.gov) is any activity that could divert a person's attention away from the primary task of driving. All distractions endanger driver, passenger, and bystander safety, the main points of distracted driving were going to look at are those that involves: •Texting • Using a cell phone or Smartphone Nevertheless, it does not matter what you call the situation.
Utah psychologists have made a clear warning against cell phone use while driving and stated: “Drivers on cell phones are as bad as drunks” (no name,Drews, Siegel & Strayer, 2006). According to their preliminary study hands-free cell phones are just as distracting as handheld cell phones because the conversation itself distracts drivers from road conditions. (Drews, Siegel & Strayer, 2006). Many people think that the modern technology can help to make cell phones safe and easy in the car. However, they are wrong because the dangers continue after the call ends.