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The dangers of using a cell phone while you are driving
Dangers of distracted driving essay
Dangers of distracted driving essay
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Drive a Car Not a Cell While operating a vehicle, all cell phone usage should be illegal. Not only is it dangerous for the driver but it also dangerous for the other drivers on the road. Drivers on the road today have many disturbances that impact their driving skills. Necessary action needs to be taken to limit more major harm due to cell phone usage while driving today. (Word Count: 64) First and foremost, cell phone use while driving can be distracting to the driver. Some may say in today’s society, most people need to be in touch with others on cell phones. However, this need to be continuously informed on the social world is not a necessary quality to have while driving. ANSWERING THE OPPOSITION. Instead, drivers need to put down the phone and focus on the road. The Untied States government reports that eighty percent of total car collisions are linked to unfocused driving (“Multitasking Leads to Distracted Driving”). This overwhelming number sends a great message: driving needs to be taken more seriously. Even without using a cell phone, managing a vehicle can be difficult enough. Ray LaHood, the Secretary of Transportation of the US Department of Transportation, said, “Distracted driving is a menace to society. And it seems to be getting worse every year.” (qtd. in Hanes) REFERRING TO AUTHORITY. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more than one million United States drivers having discussions on cellular devices at any point in time (“Cell Phone Use Distracts Drivers”). Therefore, this cannot only lead to interruptions while driving but also to taking the driver’s eyes off the road and risky driving. (Word Count: 195) In addition, the operator of the vehicle will have less control of the... ... middle of paper ... ...es. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2008. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Cell Phones and Driving." Corsicana Daily Sun 30 May 2007. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. Mulgrew, Ian. "Cell Phone Use While Driving Needs Stiff Penalties." Cell Phones and Driving. Ed. Stefan Kiesbye. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2011. At Issue. Rpt. from "Ticket for Using a Cellphone While Driving Doesn't Go Far Enough." Vancouver Sun 9 Nov. 2009. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. "Multitasking Leads to Distracted Driving." Distracted Driving. Ed. Stefan Kiesbye. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Rpt. from "Multitasking Mania and Distracted Driving." Edmunds.com. 2009. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. "Pregnant Accident Victim Chelsey Murphy's Mom Wants to Create East Naples Park." Naples Daily News. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2014.
Over the past two decades the use of cell phones has grown significantly and statistic from the past two years have proven that driving while on the phone or texting is becoming one of the leading causes of traffic accidents today. In 2011, a survey of more than 2800 American adults revealed that even thought they know that using a cell phone or texting while driving is distracting, they do it anyway, and teens surveyed admit that texting while driving is their number one distraction. "Each year, 21% of fatal car crashes involving teenagers between the ages of 16 and 19 were the result of cell phone usage. This result has been expected to grow as much as 4% ...
The several effects of distracted driving are deadly. Andrew Lavallee points out that “texting while driving is unsafe. Not only are a driver’s eyes off the road, one or both hands are off the wheel.” “We think it is incompatible with safe driving” (qtd. in Lavallee). “Study upon study showed that talking on a cellphone was far more dangerous than she’d realized – that a driver on a phone had the same reaction speed as someone legally intoxicated, that those talking on a phone behind the wheel are four times as likely to crash” (qtd. in Hanes). Stephanie Hanes also mentions that, “Unlike a conversation with a passenger, the electronic conversation takes a driver into a virtual space away from the road.” Subsequently, this causes severe problems and deadly
Most people think of someone using their cell phone while driving when they hear distracted driving, but it it much more than that. Distracted driving is when someone who is behind the wheel get distracted by either taking their hands off the wheel or take their mind of driving, which can cause them to get into an accident (paragraph 2). Distracted driving is broken down into three main parts, manual distractions which is taking your hands off the steering wheel, visual distractions which is taking your center of attention off the road and cognitive distraction which is when your mind is not focused on driving and just starts drifting away (paragraph 3). Cell phone use is easily the biggest cause of distracted driving compared to eating, talking, and others because using your cell phone requires visual, manual and cognitive attention from the person behind the wheel and in a study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Association, the amount of people who break the law and use a handheld device behind the wheel increases every single year. An estimated amount of more than, six hundred thousand people use their phone while driving. Distracted driving has quickly risen and developed in the past few years and is becoming an enormous problem. In a recent study, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), showed statistics of approximately three thousand, one hundred fifty
The act of driving itself already demands a great amount of focus and concentration from the driver. Adding a cell phone to the picture introduces additional challenges for the brain. Researchers at Monash University's Accident Research Centre have shown that multi-tasking between driving and text messaging increases the mental workload causing higher levels of stress and frustration . For instance, stress is heightened when shifting from driving on a local route to entering a highway or vice versa. Using a phone (checking a text message, posting a Facebook status) contributes to increasing the complexity of the task at hand. This exhausts the brain, weakens the operator’s driving abilities, and compromises th...
There is a current social issue that is killing many people today: texting and driving. It is very tempting to immediately check your phone when it notifies you when you receive a text message. Ignoring the sound of your phone while driving is very important for safe driving. It is not only affecting one person, it also affects the area or people around you. I believe texting and driving should be illegal because there has been many accidents due to this distraction.
The problem I am addressing today is that the privilege to operate a motor vehicle is being recklessly abused by the people of our society. America today as we all should know has an unhealthy obsession with the use of technology, more so their cell phones. People drive distracted every day and it is nothing to just brush aside. . There are many facts and statistics on how this is a critical subject of matter. Whether you think it is a big deal or not, you should consider the consequences. The common age group being found related to distracted driving crashes are said to be around 24 years and younger. More so because of so many newly and unexperienced teenage drivers. According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study
“When a driver ‘talks and drives’ they are not only putting themselves at risk, they are also putting everyone around them in a dangerous situation” (ComparisonMarket.com). A study conducted last year by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, had cameras placed inside one hundred cars and trucks to track drivers' activities before a dangerous event occurred. Research shows users of cell phones while driving caused far more crashes and near misses than non-users. These statistics do not change even if the hand held device becomes hands free by means of a blue tooth or speaker phone. Hands-free cell phones may allow the driver to keep both hands on the wheel however, devices such as headsets or voice activated dialing led to longer dialing times causing the same level of driver distraction. Even though a study released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety claims bans on handheld cell phones in many states seem to have had no impact on accident rates, drivers still should not use a hand held phone while driving in the car because car accidents associated with hand held phone use account for nearly three hundred deaths per year showing cell phone users are four times as likely to get into an automobile accident serious enough to cause injury.
Several individuals need to be constantly sending messages to their friends and family members with the use of a cellphone while driving. More and more drivers have the urge to use their cell phones while driving. This dangerous mixture can result to be even deadly. “As one researcher concluded, a cellphone draws attention away from the routines that would provide a good representation of the driving environment” (qtd. in Seppa 3).
This paper examines the dangers that arise when cell phones are used at the same time as operating a vehicle. The paper will explore the following question of why this is a problem and why the research is important. The variables investigated are the use of cell phones while driving, whether speaking or texting, and the accidents and fatalities caused from the distraction. Data of the accidents and fatalities caused by drivers distracted by their cells phones is stated to research and further explores the age group and gender of the people involved into the accidents to uncover patterns. Possible outcomes of the implementation of laws prohibiting cell phone use while driving are discussed as well as the sampling measures used to survey and research the variables.
Across the globe family and friends are losing their loved ones to fatal texting and driving accidents. These days, many strive to be connected with the world and their friends by using mobile devices. The problem is that numerous people tend to do so at bad times. For example, while one is driving, it is common to look down at the cell phone to send a short text message that could put their lives in harm. Across the nation, numerous advertising and support groups are spreading the word to encourage society to put phones down and focus on driving instead of texting. However, it really hasn’t stopped. There needs to be a significant change and with the way technology is advancing, there is an immediate, attainable action that can be accomplished.
There is a high percentage of people that spend a majority of their day sitting behind the wheel of a vehicle. Whether it is commuting to work, taking the kids to school, running errands, or simply going out to eat one may feel that their car has become a second home. With so much time spent behind the wheel, drivers become comfortable and incorporate distracting activities while trying to remain focused on the road. Our inability to put our cell phones away while driving is inexcusable. Drivers who choose to use mobile devices are endangering people’s lives and property with associated risks that are not acceptable. No one distracted driver is better than the next. Do to rising accidents
Thesis statement: Risks of texting while driving over the past few years has become a key topic for many Americans through the country. It has been the cause of numerous deaths and injuries and remains a vast disturbance for drivers. Hence driving is one of the greatest common causes of misfortunes on roads. This can result in, physical visual and cognitive distraction and significantly increases the amount of time a driver devotes not looking at the road. Therefore police officers should seize the phones of those who text and drive.
I, as a driver, too, think that cell phone use while driving is a distraction. Even though I personally don’t own a phone, I have used one. I noticed that talking on the cellular phone and driving doesn’t make it hard to focus on the road. But it is difficult and a major distraction to dial-up a number without losing focus on the road. Dialing a number is the main distraction about cel...
While it is true that laws do not stop one hundred percent of infractions, they serve as a great disincentive, and can greatly reduce the number of people who do text and drive. With less distracted driving there are fewer accidents, meaning fewer car repairs and hospital bills. Not only that, but it means that fewer people become injured and can even reduce the number of deaths. It is important, therefore, that laws be enacted to prohibit the use of cell phones while driving. Every automobile accident that a loved one of mine has experienced has been due to distracted driving. Whether it be friends or family, they all vividly recount a sense of distractedness from the other driver and anger at them for driving recklessly. With this in mind, it becomes more than just an issue of nationwide expenses, it is a personal worry of mine that I or someone I love will be seriously injured in an accident caused by cell phone use. Especially considering that nearly all of my friends have now gotten their licenses and are on the roads, I want them to be as safe as possible. Laws prohibiting cell phone use and distracted driving are therefore very important to me, as they are just one of the necessary steps that our country must take in order to reduce the number of accidents and increase safety
Cell phone use by motorist is dangerous and can cause accidents resulting in deaths and injuries. Furthermore, Nations and states should take the lead in outlawing this dangerous act. Prohibition of Cell phone use by motorists globally is the solution. Since a driver cannot concentrate fully on driving while making a phone call, he remains as impaired as someone who drives while intoxicated. In addition, imagine the risk one puts himself in when he is being driven by a drunk driver .This is the same risk that a motorist speaking on phone faces. If lawmakers are serious about addressing the increasing number of deaths related to motorists using cell phones. Hence, they should ban use of cell phone use by motorist.