The Dangers of Texting and Driving

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Texting and Driving Imagine running three football fields with your eyes closed. Now imagine driving 75 miles per hour on the interstate and closing your eyes for the length of approximately three football fields, or 4.6 seconds. This is effectively what happens when people text and drive. Texting and driving is a serious problem in the US and is resulting in too many deaths and accidents. There are some startling statistics about texting and driving. The NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) stated that in 2008, 16% of all fatal crashes and 21% of all crashes were caused by texting and driving (Chordas; Hartwell). Over 50% of teens admit to using cell phones while driving (Hart; Paterson). That was over five years ago and even more people are texting and driving today. This shows that this problem is not going to go away. The United States is falling behind when it comes to texting and driving laws. In Japan is illegal to text and drive with penalties up to three months in prison. In Great Britain, it is a criminal offense to text and drive. On a global scale...

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