“It’s the number one killer of teens” (Clark, 2013). A war is waging on throughout the streets of America. Everyday people risk their lives by driving. The enemy? Texting while driving. It is the act of composing, sending, or reading text messages while behind the wheels of a running vehicle. Driving under this influence is extremely careless and dangerous to others and is likely to cause accidents resulting in injuries or deaths. This problem is on the rise because the only ones with the power to make an impact against ending this war are law makers and law enforcement. The truth of the matter is law officials are losing the battle against people sending text messages while driving a car on the road. Law officials are mulling over the situation at hand, not doing enough to fight against the selfish crime. The laws regarding texting and driving are not fierce enough and law enforcement does not successfully apprehend the issue amongst drivers. “A Triple A study that found 9 out of 10 of its Arizona members want a texting and driving ban, but for the last 6 years, state lawmakers have rejected the bans” (Monier, 2013). Citizens desire more protection against this selfless crime, and more needs to be done. Law officials need to create laws regarding texting and driving including harsh penalties that would prove effective and then strictly enforce those laws on the streets because it is their sworn oath and duty to protect the citizens they represent from this unhandled danger.
SMS texting began in 1985 and started to gain popularity in 1990, as soon as society was captivated by this new technology, texting and driving became an issue along with the lack of legislation and ability to control it. Law makers and law enforcement are re...
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...response to curb this dangerous activity. Washington University Journal of Law & Policy, 6, 233-259. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=3&sid=2a4483c2-4ccf-465c-9068-9133dca91f8d@sessionmgr110&hid=105
Tribune Staff. (2013, October 1). Florida lawmakers need to toughen texting while driving law. The Tampa Tribune. Retrieved from http://tbo.com/list/news-opinion-editorials/florida-lawmakers-need-to-toughen-texting-while-driving-law-20131001/
Hansen-Bundy, B. (2013, November 2). Why texting-while-driving bans don't work. Mother Jones, Retrieved from http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2013/10/texting-while-driving-bans-dont-make-a-difference
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. (2013, May 23).Distracted driving. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/distracted_driving/
For some getting their drivers license is a dream come true, but it could easily turn into a nightmare. For many, it`s a dream that is never woken up from. The use of technology has grown steadily over the years, distracting us from things that are important, such as where we`re going. Texting while driving is one of the biggest problems in the United States. Not only are drivers putting themselves in danger, but they’re putting passengers and other drivers on the road in dangerous situations. This is exactly why laws should be created and enforced for distracted driving.
“New Devices Aim to Eliminate Distracted Driving.” Issues & Controversies. Infobase Learning, 11 Oct. 2010. Web. 9 Apr. 2015.
One day Chandler Gerber 23, of Bluffton collided with an Amish buggy back in April of 2012. A three year old boy and a five year old girl were killed. A 17 year old boy who was in critical condition died several days later. Chandler was sending a text that said “ I love you” to his wife when he caused the accident. Drivers who were texting were 23.2 times more likely to crash to those who weren’t texting (Cell Phones and Texting). The increasing amount of crashes caused from texting and driving and growing and becoming more of a problem. Distracted driving is an increasing problem in the United States resulting in many accidents, but a solution to the problem would be banning cellphones while driving.
Texting while driving is national growing trend, and it is quickly becoming one of the country’s top killers. Most drivers think they can manage to text and drive and still stay safe on the roads; however, the numbers do not lie! According to the National Safety Council, 1,600,000 accidents per year are caused by someone who was texting and driving. Laws and penalties for this act are too lax, and tougher laws should be enforced.
...fine. The sanctions rise for successive offenses as well, with the second violation calling for an amount in the region of $250 fine and the third and subsequent violations carrying $500 fines each. Violators are also disciplined ruthlessly if their actions result to an accident (Chretien n.p.). Some other states, such as California and Virginia have fines of $20 for breaking their texting while driving laws (“Texting While Driving Legislation”). Imposing only a fine of such low monetary value does not properly bear the significance of the crime or work strongly enough to discourage drivers from doing away with their phones putting their phones while driving. To unify evenly, the law should be enforced to deter texting while driving. The punishment for contravening the law should be constant throughout the country. The model used by Massachusetts should be embraced.
Research indicates that despite the common sense risks, few state laws specifically banning their use exist leading to the conclusion that this is a dangerous problem. While many states are moving towards straitening their existing laws or implementing “Distracted Driver” laws, the continued implications of allowing drivers to distract themselves is growing exponentially. For example, in the State of Maine, our legislature enacted a bill, which upon approval was added into law as Maine Title 29-A MRSA, § 2119 (Distracted). This law, which basically defined just texting as a distraction, did nothing towards curbing the use of major distractions while driving. Except for newly licensed, young drivers, there is no prohibition on cell phone use while driving in Maine; however, all Maine drivers are prohibited from texting while driving.
One simple text message could ruin your future, the life of your loved ones, or even a complete stranger in a matter of a moment. As the popularity of technology, social media, and cellphones increases, so does distracted driving. In 2016, many people believe texting and driving is a quick and convenient way to communicate, but don’t realize the dangers it involves, especially when done behind the wheel. The increased number of car accidents over the last several years is heavily linked to texting while driving, and it is important to spread awareness so the likelihood that this will happen will decrease. There are many different perspectives on using cell phones and other tech devices while driving, and each of the following articles provides an argument that is supported with
Driving is an important part of both the transportation and funeral industries. Unfortunately motor vehicle crashes are the number one cause of death for teenagers. Driving is a dangerous activity, and many risk factors can make it more deadly. One of the most common is distracted driving. According to the CDC as many as one in five car crashes that involve injury are caused by distracted driving. Luckily the state of vermont has taken prudent legislative action to prevent distracted driving. Although more could always be done, the legal and educational steps taken by the state of vermont are sufficient to deal with the threat of distracted driving.
In recent years high-tech devices such as smart phones have been great additions to society as a means of communication and entertainment. These additions have made everyday errands and tasks much simplier, but in the wrong hands at the wrong time, they can lead to catastrophe. Matt Richtel, Author of "Texting and Driving? Watch Out for the Textalyzer," has concluded that texting can wait and that it is a major problem since he states that road fatalities have increased " roughly 8 percent in 2015" from 2014. Matt goes on to include survey information that provides confessions from the public that people text and use social media frequently while driving. According to information that Matt provided, the state wants to "treat distracted driving like drunken driving" as a solution to lower the liklihood of people using their cell phone while driving.
We as a society need to all take responsibility when we are on the road and avoid the many temptations and distractions surrounding us. Distracted driving is dangerous plain and simple. Some may be willing to take the risk because they have never had an accident while behind the wheel. But it’s
People are constantly fixated on their phones, checking social media and texting and they seem to have become accustom to doing this wherever they please, whether it be at dinner, at work or in the car. The use of a cell phone while driving is extremely dangerous and destructive to not only the driver, but also everyone driving around them. Every year, twenty one percent of fatal car crashes involving teenagers between the ages of 16 and 19 were the result of using their cell phone while behind the wheel. This statistic is expected to grow as much as four percent every year. But, texting and driving is not just a problem among teen drivers. One-fifth of adult drivers in the United States also report sending text messages while driving (“Cell Phone & Texting Accidents”). To help fight this problem, the government needs much take a stronger stance and try to stand up against texting and driving to make the idea a bigger deal and implement harsher punishments, as well as stressing the damaging effects of texting and driving to children and teens early on in
In today’s society, texting and driving have become an issue. Many teens and adults, have formed a habit of using their cell phones while driving. Texting while driving can be very distracting, which can cause many accidents to happen. In trying to prevent this, new laws have been passed, making the use of cell phones while operating a car, illegal. However, too many people do not respect this law. People should stop getting distracted while driving because texting while driving is taking people’s attention on the road, accidents are getting higher and is comparable to drunk driving.
Texting while driving is a widespread epidemic in the United States that has unfavorable effects on our society.“Driving while texting is the standard wording used for traffic violations” (Bernstein). It causes many people to be distracted which can lead to accidents. “Eighty-nine percent of people own a cell phone” (Gardner). That is a plethora of people that are at risk of texting while driving. Also, texting has increased by ten times in three years(Bernstein). “The risk of a crash for those who are texting is twenty-three point two times greater than those who are not” (Gardner).Driving drunk only makes a person seven times more likely to be in a crash (Bernstein). This means texting while driving is three times more dangerous than driving intoxicated. One in five drivers admits to texting while driving(Gardner). This shows that that texting while driving is a widespread epidemic. When a survey asked teenagers whether they text and drive,“seventy five percent of teens admitted to texting while driving” (7).Distracted driving causes seventy-eight percent of car crashes(Bernstein). “No distraction causes as high of a risk of an accident as texting while driving” (Gardner). Also with these statistics, it is not hard to understand why accidents in teenagers that are driving have risen. The Bluetooth capability in cars gives a driver a hands-free way to talk on the phone, but is still not completely safe (8). Also, only 1 out of 3 US cars sold in 2009 had this feature. New systems are being developed that will use Bluetooth as well a global positioning technology to allow parents to monitor cell phone use and texting while driving (10).
Texting and driving is an epidemic that is taking the lives of thousands of peoples each year.
Now that you know how texting and driving is affecting our nation, let’s talk about different ways to prevent it from causing deaths.