Texting While Driving free essay sample

Better regulation is needed because drivers using cell phones are seriously impaired and because laws on texting while driving are not enforced as should be. No one can deny that cell phones have caused traffic deaths and injuries. Cell phones were involved in many fatal accidents in 2011 alone. Early in November, two-year-old Morgan Pena was killed by a driver distracted by his cell phone. Morgan’s mother, Patti Pena, reports that the driver â€Å"ran a stop sign at 45 mph, broadsided my vehicle and killed Morgan as she sat in her car seat†¦Ã¢â‚¬  and that, â€Å"A week later, Officer Shannon Smith, who was guarding prisoners by the side of the road, was killed by a woman distracted by a phone call† (Besthoff). Expert testimonies, public opinions, and even cartoons suggest that driving while ‘phoning’ is dangerous. Lyndsey Layton, a reporter for the Washington Post and an expert on the relation between cell phones and accidents, estimates that between 450 and 1,000 crashes a year have some connection to cell phone use (C9). We will write a custom essay sample on Texting While Driving or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In a survey conducted by Farmers Insurance, 87% of drivers said that cell phones affect their ability to drive, and 40% reported having ‘close calls’ with other drivers distracted by phones (Farmers). Many people are lucky to cheat death while others, guilty and innocent, unfortunately die. Scientific research confirms the dangers of using phones while on the road. In 2012, a study appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine. The authors, Donald Redelmeier and Robert Tibshirani, studied 699 volunteers who made their cell phone bills available in order to confirm the times when they were using their phone while driving. The participants agreed to report any nonfatal collisions in which they were involved in. By comparing the time of a collision with the phone records, the researchers evaluated the dangers of driving while ‘phoning’. The results were unsettling; â€Å"We found that using a cellular telephone was associated with a risk of having a motor vehicle collision that was about four times as high as that among the same drivers when they were not using their cellular telephones. This relative risk is similar to the hazard associated with driving with a blood alcohol level at the legal limit† (456). A 2010 study conducted by John M. Violanti, a scientist from Rochester Institute of Technology, focused on Oklahoma’s’ records of drivers who were in cell phone related accidents. He found an increase in the risk of fatality â€Å"†¦if a phone was being used and a doubled risk simply when a phone was present in a vehicle. † (522-23). Some groups have argued that state traffic laws regulating cell phone use unnecessary. Sadly, this is not true. Laws on traffic safety vary from state to state, and drivers distracted by cell phones can get off with light punishment even when they cause fatal accidents. The driver who killed Morgan Pena in Pennsylvania â€Å"†¦ [she] received two tickets and a $50 fine—and retained his driving privileges. † (Pena), and in Georgia, â€Å"The young woman distracted by her phone who ran down and killed a two-year-old was sentenced to ninety days in boot camp and five hundred hours of community service. † (Ippolito J1). The families of the victims are understandably upset by laws that lead to such light sentences. When certain kinds of driver behaviors are shown to be dangerous, we wisely produce special laws making them illegal and imposing specific punishments. Running red lights, failing to stop for a school bus, and drunk driving are obvious examples; talking on the phone and texting in a moving vehicle should be no exception. Unlike more general laws covering careless driving, specific laws leave little uncertainty for law officers and for judges and juries imposing punishments. Laws passed by counties and towns regarding distracted driving have had some effect, but it makes more sense to legislate it at the state level. Local laws are not likely to have the impact of state laws, and keeping track of a wide variety of local ordinances is confusing for drivers. Even a spokesperson for Verizon Wireless has said that â€Å"Statewide bans are preferable to a ‘crazy patchwork quilt of ordinances’†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (qtd. In Haughney A8). These laws should be strictly enforced to the point where drivers are afraid to even touch their cell phones while driving. Despite the claims of some activists who say that some drivers will be on their phones while driving despite any law, if we impose tougher and stricter laws regulating phone use, we can make our roads safer. For example, in Japan, â€Å"†¦ [car] accidents linked to cell phones fell by 75% just a month after the country prohibited using a handheld phone while driving. † (Haughney A8). Research suggests and common sense tells us that it is not possible to drive an automobile at high speeds, dial numbers, and carry on conversations without significant risks. When such behavior is firmly regulated, obviously our roads will be safer. Works Cited Besthoff, Len. â€Å"Cell Phone Use Increases Risk of Accidents, but Users Willing to Take the Risk. † WRAL. com. Capitol Broadcasting, 9 Nov. 2011. Web. 12 Jan. 2012. Farmers Insurance. â€Å"New Survey Shows Drivers Have Had ‘Close Calls’ with Cell Phone Users. † Farmers. Farmers Insurance, 8 May 2011. Web. 12 Jan. 2012. Haughney, Christine. â€Å"Taking Phones out of Drivers’ Hands. † Washington Post 5 April. 2009: A8. Print. Ippolito, Milo. â€Å"Driver’s Sentence Not Justice, Mom Says. † Atlanta Journal-Constitution 21 Nov 2011: J1. Library Curriculum. Layton, Lyndsey. â€Å"Legislators Aiming to Disconnect Motorists. † Washington Post 10 Dec. 2010: C9. Print. Pena, Patricia N. â€Å"Patti Pena’s Letter to Car Talk. † Cartalk. com. Dewey, Cheetham, and Howe, n. d. Web. 02 Nov 2011. Redelmeier, Donald A. , and Robert J. Tibshirani. â€Å"Association between Cellular-Telephone Calls and Motor Vehicle Collisions. † New England Journal of Medicine 336. 7 (2012): 453-58. Print. Violanti, John M. â€Å"Cellular Phones and Fatal Traffic Collisions. † Accident Analysis and Prevention 30. 4 (2010): 519-524. Print. Texting while driving free essay sample Have you ever sent a text while driving? Texting while driving has been raising issues in today’s society as 46 percent of teens, and more than one in five drivers have admitted to texting while driving (source). This hazardous habit has lead to many studies to expose the dangers of texting while driving, and how it compares to drunk driving to all drivers. Texting while driving and drunk driving cause an increase in automobile accidents and health factors that are extremely dangerous. Reckless driving habits such as texting and drunk driving cause thousands of accidents each year, resulting in many injuries and deaths. In 2010, more than 1. 4 million arrests were made for drivers operating under the influence of alcohol and drugs (Impaired Driving 1). In total, 10,228 people were killed in alcohol related crashes in 2010, accounting for 31 percent of all crashes in the United States (Impaired Driving 1). In addition, over 50 percent of teens have admitted to texting behind the wheel (Texting While Driving 2). We will write a custom essay sample on Texting while driving or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Although the legal consequences are nowhere as steep as drunk driving, the numbers are just as scary. First of all, lets all admit it. Every one of us has either sent a text message or been in a car with a driver sending texts. The scary truth is that in 2009, 5,474 deaths and nearly 450,000 injuries were sustained in car crashes. Of these, roughly 20 percent of deaths and 5 percent of injuries were caused by the use of a cell phone (Texting While Driving 1). Unfortunately, most people, including myself, were or still are completely unaware of how dangerous texting while driving is. Yet the scariest aspect of this all is that social media and smart phones are continuing to grow, providing more distractions to thousands of drivers. Who would ever think sending a text can be as dangerous as drunk driving? Not only do the number of deaths and accidents pose a serious threat, but the health factors they present are extremely dangerous. Drunk driving has many extremely dangerous health factors that often lead to crashes and deaths. The first of many risks it presents is the reaction time a driver has while intoxicated. In a study conducted, a sober driver takes . 54 seconds to hit the brakes. In comparison, it takes a legally drunk driver with a BAC of . 08 an extra four feet to hit the brakes (Texting And Driving Worse 1). Obviously, the more intoxicated a driver is, the more time it will take them to react to cars stopping ahead of them. In 2010, 112 million cases of drunk driving were reported (get source name.. ). This presents a serious threat not only to the drunk driver, but to many innocent drivers out on the road. On top of that, texting while driving also has many dangerous effects. In the same study found earlier, it was discovered that reading a text takes an additional 70 feet to hit the brakes compared to an unimpaired driver. The scariest part of this all may be that most people do not recognize that texting while driving is just as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than drunk driving. Whether you are a teen or an adult, I am sure you have seen, been with, or sent a text message yourself while driving. Personally, I have been in a car and have been the driver of a car in which the driver has sent a text. In addition, I see people reading and texting on their phones every day when I am driving around. The scariest part is that most people, including me in the past, are completely unaware of the dangers texting while driving presents. Also, the average teen sends more than 3,000 texts per month and 64 percent have admitted to texting while driving. It is necessary to promote the dangers of these activities to all drivers and help prevent more deaths on the road. In conclusion, distracted driving, especially texting while driving can be just as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than drunk driving. From now on, wait to use your phone or pull aside the road before checking it. Doing so will help save roughly 6,000 or more lives per year. Next time you get a text while driving, might it cross your mind that it is as dangerous as drunk driving? From now on, pull over or wait to respond, it could save your life.