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 “ran a stop sign at 45 mph, broadsided my vehicle and killed Morgan as she sat in her car seat…” and that, “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).
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 Essay on Dangers Of Cell Phone Use
Dangers of Cell Phone Use The use cellular phone has extended like wild fire in the recent decade. It has become an integral part of everyday life for many American citizens, and a great number of people depend on them to perform daily operations. Unluckily, many of these daily operations take place while the individual is driving. Cell phones and other kinds of wireless communication also ...
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; “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 “…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 “… [she] received two tickets and a $50 fine—and retained his driving privileges. ” (Pena), and in Georgia, “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.
The Term Paper on Cell Phone Use While Driving
... conclusion, it is clear that using the cell phone while driving is dangerous. Cell phone use distracts a driver, making him lose his focus on the ... at the legal blood-alcohol limit” (Box). Generally, the law states that at least 0.08% of alcohol should be found ... as trucks and buses, the risks become alarmingly high. Dialing while driving a heavy vehicle increases the risk to 5.9 times higher ...
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 “Statewide bans are preferable to a ‘crazy patchwork quilt of ordinances’…” (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, “… [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. “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. “New Survey Shows Drivers Have Had ‘Close Calls’ with Cell Phone Users. ” Farmers. Farmers Insurance, 8 May 2011. Web. 12 Jan. 2012. Haughney, Christine. “Taking Phones out of Drivers’ Hands. ” Washington Post 5 April. 2009: A8. Print. Ippolito, Milo. “Driver’s Sentence Not Justice, Mom Says. ” Atlanta Journal-Constitution 21 Nov 2011: J1. Library Curriculum. Layton, Lyndsey. “Legislators Aiming to Disconnect Motorists. ” Washington Post 10 Dec. 2010: C9. Print. Pena, Patricia N. “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. “Association between Cellular-Telephone Calls and Motor Vehicle Collisions. ” New England Journal of Medicine 336. 7 (2012): 453-58. Print. Violanti, John M. “Cellular Phones and Fatal Traffic Collisions. ” Accident Analysis and Prevention 30. 4 (2010): 519-524. Print.
The Essay on Cell Phone Use While Driving 4
While driving through the city you see many on their cell phones while driving. When on the road, or away from my loved ones we always want to make sure that we are in touch with them in case of an emergency. Many state that turning off your phone is key to being a safer driver. I disagree with that statement because your family needs you at any time of the day and that is why cell phone usage ...
