Driver inattention is the number one contributing factor in motor vehicle accidents in the U.S cities and highways. For example, dialing number, receiving calls and holding conversations on a cell phone while driving impairs the driver’s ability to focus. In 2002, according to the National Department of Public Safety, drivers on cell phones was cited as a contributing factor in one fatal crash, 104 injuries and 137 property damage crashes. The department estimates that at any given time during daylight hours about 500,000 vehicle drivers, or 3% of all such drivers, are using cell phones (NHTSA 8).
Handheld conversation is more dangerous than talking to a passenger, scanning a radio station and changing CD disks in your car while driving. A person who talks on cell phone while driving is most likely to run traffic lights or get involved in an accident. In December 1999 in Hill Township, the death of a two years old girl was caused by a driver who allegedly ignored a stop sign while talking on a cell phone (Knowles 1).
Surfing the Internet, text messaging and receiving picture messages on cell phones is compared to someone who drives intoxicated. According to a survey done by University of Utah Psychologists, “…. people are as impaired when they drive and talk on a cell phone, as they are when they drive intoxicated at a legal blood alcohol limit of 0.08 percent, which is the minimum level that defines illegal drunken driving in most U.S. states” (“The Journal Human Factor” 1). Last month, I received a call from my friend in Minnesota, explaining how his sport’s car got hit from the back by a teen driver who was text messaging and ran into his car while he was awaiting the stop sign at an intersection. Using cell phones while driving jeopardizes the safety of vehicle occupants and pedestrians, because the device takes away the concentration required of the motorists to focus on the wheel while operating a truck, SUV or sedan. As a result, their use should be outlawed while operating any automobile.
California has joined other states (New York, New Jersey, Minnesota, Virginia, Hawaii, etc) and other countries around the world (U.K, Japan, Portugal, Australia, Switzerland, etc) to ban the use of handheld phones conversation while driving. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the governor of California passed its bill of law on July 1 2008, which had restricted the use of cell phones while driving in California. The law imposes a fine of $ 20 for a first offense and $50 for subsequent offenses. According to the S.F Chronicle, earlier this year, Schwarzenegger told his daughter, who had recently started to drive, that if he catches her on the phone with her hands off the wheel, she will no longer be able to drive. He further emphasis that “If she makes that mistake, then I will take the car away from her, and she will drive with the bus, because it's inexcusable”(Gledhill 6).
On the other hand, the use of cell phones while driving is significant to our society today. One can use this device while driving to deliver goods and services accurately, without having to waste gasoline, driving up and down trying to find were he or she suppose to make the delivery. Parents can check on their family while coming from work or from a business trip while in route home. We can also use cell phones to make emergency calls, report drunk drivers and accidents while on highways. Although some people have argued that smoking, drowsiness, GPS and adjusting the CD player are other significant causes of inattentive driving, they fail to realize that cell phones are more dangerous to those who used them while driving than using other accessories in motor vehicles.
However, let us face the reality as a human that is dangerous for a driver at any age to drive while talking, text messaging and browsing the internet on a cell phone. What is bad for experienced drivers is horrible for inexperienced drivers at any age. To avoid accidents and injuries, technology has made Bluetooth affordable to everyone at a very low cost.
Work Cited
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, "An Investigation of the Safety Implications of Wireless
Communications in Vehicles." 2000: p. 8.
Lynda Gledhill, "Handheld phone ban for driver” Chronicle Sacramento Bureau. 15 Sept. 2006
"Drivers on cell phones are as bad as drunks." journal Human Factors 29 June 2006
Knowles, Bryan, “Should Using A Cell Phone While Driving Be Illegal”? Speak out.com. 15 June 2000 < http://speakout.com/activism/issue_briefs/1334b-1.html>.
