Cell Phones and Driving

As you say goodbye to your children as they prepare to go out for the evening you

encourage them to have a few drinks before driving home. While this is not realistic to

think any parent would encourage their teen to drink and drive, it is something that one

might as well tell them if you permit these children to talk on a cell phone while driving.

Is has been proven in many different states that teenage drivers are more susceptible to

accidents without the use of a cell phone, but when they choose to add a cell phone to the

mix, the potential for an accident increases significantly.

Over the past 10 – 15 years, the number of cell phone users has steadily increased.

With this increase, naturally comes at least an equal increase in the number of cell phone

users who drive while talking on the phone. The National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration (NHTSA) estimates “there are some 974,000 vehicles on the road at any

given daylight moment driven by someone on a hand-held phone” (Glassbrenner,

2005). Anyone who has been driving for more than a year has been the “victim” of a cell

phone driver on at least on occasion. There have been comparisons drawn which have

been supported by various studies, some of which will be discussed throughout this

paper, which equate the cell phone driver to a drunk driver. While it could be argued that

there is no comparison between the two, the inference drawn by many of the surveys is

that the drivers are more likely to be involved in accidents as a result of being

preoccupied with their phone conversations. “Cell phone distraction causes 2,600 deaths

and 330,000 injuries in the United States every year” (Britt, 2005).

As a society, we have become dependent upon the use of cell phones to the point

we will talk on them no matter what we are doing or where we are. Whether it be in a

public restroom, walking through an airport, or even in the finest of restaurants we strike

up a conversation at the mere ringing or vibration of a cell phone. Our teenagers

absolutely must have a cell phone so they can stay in touch with their friends.

Considering all this, it only seems natural that we would be willing to strike up a cell

phone conversation in our car.