Verified Document

Texting And Driving Safety The Essay

That is because texting also involves the same brain regions and cognitive processes as communicating by telephone that are responsible for the dangers associated with cell phones and driving and combines that risk factor with another additional independent risk factor: visual distraction. Unlike cell phones, which distract the driver visually for only a small percentage of the time when they are being used for verbal communication, texting while driving is a continuous visual distraction by its very nature that makes it much more dangerous by comparison. Whereas cell phone users only look at their devices to dial and identify in-coming calls drivers who text must continually shift their attention back and forth from watching the road to looking at their communications devices. Especially at typical highway speeds, the amount of time typically required to look at a mobile device for texting purposes is too much time to look away from the road in the event the driver encounters any type of emergency or other situation requiring an immediate response and driver input into vehicle controls (Chisholm, Caird, & Lockhart, 2007). At highway speeds, texting while driving is a modern form of Russian Roulette using a vehicle instead of a loaded firearm. In congested urban environments, texting while driving may increase the chances of minor vehicular accidents more than driver fatalities, but it also dramatically increases the risk of fatal single-vehicle accidents involving pedestrians (AHAS, 2005; Hennessy & Wiesenthal, 2005, NYSDU, 2010).

As if those specific risks were not bad enough, texting also combines those inherent risks with the additional problem attributable to which drivers tend to do the most texting and which drivers are already considered the most dangerous because of their inexperience and limited judgement-making...

Already, new teen drivers have the highest risk of accidents because of their inexperience driving and because they tend to underestimate risks in general and overestimate their capabilities in general. The fact that they rely more heavily than any other demographic segment of the population in using texting for communication presents the equivalent of a "perfect storm" of deadly risk factors. The sooner legislators recognize the need to enact more restrictive -- and if necessary, more punitive -- restrictions on the use of communications equipment while driving the better because any delay in that regard will probably be able to be measured in lives by the thousands.
References

AHAS. (2005). Fact Sheet: Speeding Accessed 26 Nov 2010 from:

http://www.saferoads.org/issues/fs-speed.htm

Chisholm, S.L., Caird, J.K., and Lockhart, J. "The effects of practice with MP3 players on driving performance." Accident Analysis & Prevention, Vol. 40, No. 2;

(2007): 704-713.

Hennessy, D.A. And Wiesenthal, D.L. (2005). Contemporary Issues in Road User

Behavior and Traffic Safety. Toronto: Nova.

Hosking, S., Young, K., and Regan, M. (2007). "The effects of text messaging on young novice driver performance." in: Faulks, I.J., Regan, M., Stevenson, M., Brown,

J., Porter, a. And Irwin, J.D. (Eds.). Distracted Driving. Sydney, NSW:

Australasian College of Road Safety. Pages 155-187. Accessed 26 Nov 2010

http://www.acrs.org.au/srcfiles/7Hosking-Young -- Regan.pdf

NYSDU. (2010). New York State Driving University: Driving Safely Accessed 26 Nov

2010 from:

http://newyork.drivinguniversity.com/driving-safety/new-york-school-zones/

Sources used in this document:
References

AHAS. (2005). Fact Sheet: Speeding Accessed 26 Nov 2010 from:

http://www.saferoads.org/issues/fs-speed.htm

Chisholm, S.L., Caird, J.K., and Lockhart, J. "The effects of practice with MP3 players on driving performance." Accident Analysis & Prevention, Vol. 40, No. 2;

(2007): 704-713.
http://www.acrs.org.au/srcfiles/7Hosking-Young -- Regan.pdf
http://newyork.drivinguniversity.com/driving-safety/new-york-school-zones/
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Texting While Driving Speech Outline Description of
Words: 742 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Texting While Driving Speech Outline Description of the audience for your speech: The audience for this speech would likely be comprised of members of the legislature, preferably members of Congress, who could enact a law in all 50 states because only this group can create laws on a national level. The topic of this speech is the problem of texting while driving and how it negatively affects people of the U.S. In all

Driving Drunk Is Dangerous
Words: 1296 Length: 4 Document Type: Term Paper

Driving Drunk Dangerous Mandatory license revocation and sentencing should be applied to all young adults who are convicted of drunk driving. In addition young adults who are found to drive drunk should be forbidden from riding in a vehicle with other young adult passengers for a period of up to one year. Every year the number of fatalities and serious accidents that result from drunk drivers rises. There have been numerous laws

Risks of Texting While Driving
Words: 679 Length: 2 Document Type: Outline

Speech / Presentation / Essay Outline Title – Texting and driving is not a skill, but a dangerous activity. I. Introduction · Driving is an exciting adventure for new drivers as it comes with personal responsibilities that need undivided attention. · Distracted driving is a dangerous activity associated with some unintended and sometimes fatal consequences because of the need for undivided attention on the road. · Texting while driving is one of the most common

Safe Driving and Standardized Cell
Words: 1029 Length: 3 Document Type: Term Paper

Problems to be addressed: There are several problems associated with the issue of cell phone use while driving and the ineffective regulations to restrict the use of mobile phones on the road. First, the increased use of these devices while driving has significant impacts on driving performance. This is because mobile phone use during driving distracts the driver physically, cognitively, and visually. The distractions contribute to the inability of drivers to

Alcohol and Highway Safety Vehicle Crashes Have
Words: 2390 Length: 9 Document Type: Research Paper

Alcohol and Highway Safety Vehicle crashes have been accounted as the leading cause of death in the 15-20-age group of drivers and most of these crashes are alcohol-related. About 1/5 of all U.S. drivers admit to driving while or after drinking and 4 out of 5 of them are legally impaired. There have been prevention laws and further recommendations to prevent drunk driving but violations and fatalities persist. Suggested legislations to

Schiller Text Covers Economic Theory
Words: 1096 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Effective measurement of economic performance and when the government should stay (or not stay) out of things is discussed at the end of the chapter. Chapter 16 Web Activities 1. Economist Russ Roberts and filmmaker John Papola have created a video of a rap-off between economists John Maynard Keynes and F.A. Hayek. View the video at http://www.econstories.tv/. Read the lyrics on the same page, and then read the line-by-line discussion of

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now