dangers of texting and driving

Write an essay about the dangers of texting and driving and other forms of distracted driving with the hope of eliminating it altogether.

ANSWER

Dangers of Texting and Driving

Introduction

Every day people are killed in crashes that are connected to driving distractions. Distracted driving is driving while other activities draw a person’s attention away from driving. Distracted driving can raise the chances of a motor vehicle crash. Anything that draws your attention away from driving can be considered a distraction (Bergmark, Gliklich, Guo, and Gliklich, 2016). For instance, taking on the phone, sending text messages, eating or drinking while driving, and using a navigation system are some examples of distracted driving. However, texting has been the most alarming distraction. Reading or sending a message takes a driver’s eyes off the road for more than five seconds. A driver cannot be safe on the road unless the task of driving has their full attention. This paper will focus on the dangers of texting while driving and other forms of distracted driving to eliminate them altogether. Any distraction or non-driving activity influences safe driving and increases the chances of crashing.

Dangers of Texting and Driving

According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted driving claimed over 3,142 lives in 2020. Ideally, using any device, especially mobile phones, while driving leads to the huge potential for injuries and deaths due to veering off or collisions (Blenner, 2021). Texting while driving has been linked to fatalities and injuries on the road. One of the major reasons texting is among the most dangerous forms of distracted driving is that it combines manual, visual, and cognitive distractions (Sorum and Pal, 2022). Texting tasks the driver’s eyes off the road, which causes visual distraction. Manual distraction results from taking hands off the steering wheel while replying to texts, while cognitive distraction results from diverting the mind from other things other than driving. The effect of cognitive distractions is that they influence the reaction time to the shifting surroundings.

The risk of near-crash or crash increases when a driver is trying to reach a phone or replying to a text message. Statistics from the National Safety Council reports indicate that texting and driving are linked to traffic deaths. Mobile phone use has led to 1.6 million crashes annually, while texting while driving is more likely to lead to a crash compared to drunk driving (Blenner, 2021). Research has shown that most of the teens who text while driving tend to veer out of the lane during ten percent of their driving time since their minds are off the road and pay no attention to the direction of their vehicle.

Teen and young adult drivers are the most at risk for distracted driving. Over the past years, texting among other mobile phone activities while driving have become the main contributors to youth and young adult death and injuries, particularly in car accidents. More than three thousand teens and young drivers have died due to texting while driving. In the United States, drivers between the age of 15-19 are more likely to engage in distracted driving, with a high percentage involved in crashes stating to have distractions during the crash (Tabuñar, 2019).

Doing something else when driving puts extra demands on drivers, which may lower their driving capabilities (Khan, Agrawal, Jain, and Choudhary, 2021). For instance, this may lead to a driver being less observant and making worse decisions about how they ensure vehicle safety. This is a low standard of driving which means that a driver may not anticipate hazards that may result in crashes and accidents due to destruction. The result of distractions such as talking, texting, and browsing is that the driver is less capable to stay in the right lane and sense changes around them and react in time (Caird et al., 2014). Driving while on the phone may lead to exceeding speed limits and failing to maintain a consistent speed. Relatively, when texting, drivers are often driving at slow speeds with delayed reaction and inability to stick to the right lanes and check the traffic, which makes distractions extremely dangerous while driving.

Other forms of distracted driving that have led to crashes, accidents, and deaths include using navigation systems, talking while driving. These activities are dangerous since they lead to manual, visual, and manual distractions. When the driver is distracted by other activities, there is a probability of being involved in a crash since their hands are off the wheel or they are mentally distracted. Therefore, they are more likely to be involved in crashes, accidents, injured, or killed. They may also cause injuries and deaths of other passengers or motorists. For instance, Massachusetts teen Aaron Deveau got into a crash as a result of distracted driving while replying to a message. He hit and killed a 55-year-old after crossing the double yellow line. The driver, Elizabeth Meyers of Mary Land killed a rider when she was replying to messages while driving. The cyclist was on the right, but Elizabeth’s behavior led to his death.

Conclusion

Injuries, deaths, crashes, and accidents as a result of distracted driving are completely preventable. Anything that takes the attention of the driver from being an engaged driver leads to distraction which is dangerous to other drivers, cyclists, and passengers. Looking at the phone or getting involved in other activities makes the driver’s thoughts preoccupied while their concentration should be on driving and the car environment. Laws are being established and enforced to lower the risks of distracted driving. Automobile makers have also added devices to vehicles to ensure that the driver gets less distraction. Drivers should concentrate on driving to prevent crashes and accidents that result from distracted driving.

References

Bergmark, R. W., Gliklich, E., Guo, R., & Gliklich, R. E. (2016). Texting while driving: the development and validation of the distracted driving survey and risk score among young adults. Injury Epidemiology, 3(1), 1-10.

Blenner, J. A. (2021). Countermeasures That Work–Distracted Driving [Traffic Tech] (No. DOT HS 813 192). The United States. Department of Transportation. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Caird, J. K., Johnston, K. A., Willness, C. R., Asbridge, M., & Steel, P. (2014). A meta-analysis of the effects of texting on driving. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 71, 311-318.

Khan, A. B., Agrawal, R., Jain, S. S., & Choudhary, A. (2021). Review of distracted driving in young drivers: strategies for management of behavioral patterns. International Journal of Crashworthiness, 1-13.

Sorum, N. G., & Pal, D. (2022). Effect of Distracting Factors on Driving Performance: A Review. Civil Engineering Journal, 8(2), 382-405.

Tabuñar, S. M. S. (2019). Predictors and risk perceptions of using cell phones while driving among young adult drivers. Journal of Traffic and Transportation Engineering, 7(2), 71-84.