Banning Cell Phones While Driving

Nearly 6,000 people are killed connecting to the outcome of cell phone use while driving, according to Edmunds.com (7). Texting and talking on the phone throughout the time that a person is driving can have deadly consequences, but people still don’t seem to want to give up risking their life. There are many issues that can happen while on the road related to the usage of cell phones. It is important to stop people from looking at their phones while driving, because it is extremely distracting and not safe. Even hands free devices are not as safe as they seem to be. There have to be consequences for people using their cell phones while driving in order to improve the people’s safety. According to Edmunds.com, cell phones are known as distractions everywhere in the world and have created several concerns to several countries (9).

Many accidents are blamed on distracted driving and most of the distractions are caused by cell phone usage. However, some opponents feel that creating a law against cell phone use infringes their personal rights. Others think that banning someone from using their cell phones is equivalent to telling someone that they can't adjust their radio or chat with someone else in their car. However, using a cell phone, whether talking or texting, while driving can be extremely dangerous; it should be made illegal because it is very hazardous to yourself and the people surrounding you, can lead to the death of loved ones, and it is even compared to the danger level of drunk driving. No matter what age the driver is, under no

An article found on EBSCO, written by John Callegari for Long Island Business News, unveiled the multitude of legislative action that has been taken by the nation as a whole. The article declares that Representative McCarthy introduced legislation to standardize laws regarding the use of handheld devices while driving, known as the Safe Drivers Act of 2011. Her evidence in success of the ban passed in her state of New York was that, “Laws do work. Immediately after New York banned cell phone use there was a 47 percent decline in cellphone activity while driving” (Callegari 1). As noted in the article, the only states that don’t offer regulations are: Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South

Enforcement problems arise because the offense is hard to detect except through erratic driving behavior (Gardner, 2010). Traffic stops such as those used to check for seatbelt use may help enforce bans, as officers may ask to check cell phones for evidence of very recent texting activity (Gardner, 2010). Another difficulty in enforcing these laws involves the individual drivers themselves ---many of whom believe laws do not have an effect on them (Sherzan, 2010). Many drivers simply ignore the law because they think they are safe drivers and any possible punishment for a violation will be minimal (Sherzan, 2010). Another reason drivers continue to use cell phones while driving is because they do not fear being prosecuted or convicted of crimes if they are actually caught (Sherzan, 2010). In addition to enforcement issues, statistics seem to indicate there has not been a reduction in the number of crashes in states where such a ban is in place (Sherzan, 2010). The following section will illustrate how cell phone usage contributes to automobile

According to Ashley Gaddis from Counterpoint, “From 1999 to 2008, nearly fifty-two thousand people were killed in car crashes caused by distracted drivers” (n.pag.). Distracted driving started when technology became mobile and handheld. Many people have died and gotten injured from people not paying attention to the road. This problem has been growing as technology advances. Distracted driving is a big problem and there needs to be stronger penalties and laws in place to deter people from distracted driving.

Things are not all bad, though. Laws concerning the use of phones in cars, and more specifically texting while driving are finally starting to see the light of day. According to Anne McCartt, the senior vice president of research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a ban on hand-held phones in New York reduced use of such devices by about fifty percent. That was until use was re-measured the next year, finding that the “decline had dissipated substantially” (Politico). McCartt speculates this is due to poor enforcement, as a similar ban in Washington D.C. resulted in another fifty percent decline, only this one was sustained for more than a year after the law was put in place. Clearly strong enforcement is important, and well worth it; a fifty percent reduction in use of cell phones while driving is

Kratsas stated that according to the National Safety Council’s Annual injury and fatality report, 26% of the accident in the United States are caused by the use of cellphones. Using cellphones while driving has been a chronic problem in America. The U.S. government of transportation have been trying to make laws that forbid using cellphones behind the wheel. According to an article by Marino, “10 states plus D.C prohibit all drivers from using handheld cellphones, 32 states and D.C. prohibit novice drivers from cell phone use, and 30 states plus D.C. prohibit all drivers from text messaging.” Even though there are laws that forbid

The state of Nebraska like other states have put in place curtain laws to keep its citizens safe from harm. Now, no system is flawless in its course so it is necessary that change occurs so that the system can become better. Nebraska’s driving laws and cell phone usage is one law that most definitely needs to be stricter so that the roads will become safer for all drivers. According to the chart from Nebraska Department of Roads it clear that in a span of 10 years in each category there has been an increase of accidents reported to due to distracted drivers. Among the findings mobile phone usage was taken in account in these finds (Nebraska Drivers Involved in Distracted* Driving Crashes). Since

Amy Norton’s 2015 article, states that enforcing texting while driving laws saw a decline in auto related hospitalizations by seven percent. This difference in hospital visits was especially seen in states that made texting while driving a primary offense. If texting while driving is simply kept as a secondary offense, many people will continue to do it at the expense of other’s lives. If texting while driving laws become a primary offense everywhere, police officers can stop accidents before they even start. This alone would save countless lives. Since studies involving strict cell phone laws have already been conducted and proven successful, there would be no drawbacks to enforcing these strict laws everywhere in the United States. In fact, once strict and consistent cell phone usage laws are enforced everywhere, the benefits will surely be even

There are 300 million cellphones in the world, now a higher number than the outrageous 254 million vehicles. Not surprisingly, it is becoming increasingly popular to use cell phones wherever you go, including in the car. As a result, officials are warning citizens against these habits and their fatal results. Many people do not realize that the dangers of using a phone while driving are just as great as the popularity, which brings the government to a pressing decision-are national laws the right direction to head, and if so, how will it impact society? There are many reasons for the government to synthesis laws against distracted driving, some of which include the following:education is not enough to turn distracted driving around, people are stubborn; they don't change without laws, and laws can work together with advertisements to further the cause-they don't have to be alone and separate in cause.

Kratsas, Gabrielle. "Cellphone Use Causes over 1 in 4 Car Accidents." 28 Mar. 2014. Web. 29 Jan. 2016.

In America, drivers become distracted by using their cell phones. Many young and old drivers are texting and using their phones while getting into accidents on the highway. In 2013, 424,000 injuries occurred in accidents involving distracted drivers (Ncsl.org, 2016). Fourteen states passed laws to ban using hand-held cell phones while driving. California, New York, and New Jersey are some of the states that banned driving while using cell phones. Although these states banned cell phone use while driving there are exceptions to the law. Law enforcement agents, Firefighters, Emergency medical technicians and State DOT employees can text and use their cell phones while driving (Ncsl.org, 2016). At the local, state, and federal level lawmakers are focusing their concern on distracted driving. Laws must exist to end texting and cell phone use while driving to save lives and keep roadways safe.

1. The National Safety Council estimates that at least 1.6 million crashes each year involve drivers using cell phones and texting and drivers who use a cell phone – either handheld or hands-free – are four times more likely to be involved in a crash.

Lastly, cell phone use while driving should be banned because it can become dangerous for oneself as well as others on the road. Not only does cell phone use for drivers endanger other people, it endangers the life of the operator itself. Drivers can run off the road into trees, ditches, or poles; they may also run into other cars or drift into oncoming traffic. Using a cell phone while driving also puts other drivers on the road in danger; if a driver is texting, their eyes are on their phone and they may not see the car in front of them stopping, which will lead into a wreck that could injury someone.

Arthur Tom Benning’s article, “Does Banning Cellphone Use while Driving Reduce Accidents?” analyzes the effectiveness of banning cellphone use while driving as a way to curb distracted driving. Even though Tom does not tell us clearly the bans in place have had desired result, he consider how the bans affect Texas cities where have stepped forward the rule from the imperfect crash data and some researches. There are few conclusion that comes from Tom’s analysis: some people have pushed hard for the rule; distracted driving crashes still increase after enforce the rule; there are many variables affect the result; some people against the rule. In my opinion, Toms' style of organization