Summary: The Importance Of Texting While Driving

April 30, 2013: A woman driving her Dodge Ram truck on an eastern Texas highway crashes into an SUV kills the driver and a passenger leaving a 6-year-old boy paralyzed. Aug. 23, 2016: A motorist in Japan rams into two pedestrians and kills one of them. July 21, 2015: A 17-year-old girl runs through a red light after messaging on Facebook for eight minutes. She kills a Minnesota man and his 10-year-old daughter. According to the Chicago Tribune, these are all accidents that happened because one person decided to look down at their phone for a quick minute. This raises the issue of the use of cell phones while driving. Although it is nice to use a phone while driving, putting yourself and others in danger should be a primary offense.
What would
Well studies show that people that text and drive or are intoxicated while driving have the same reaction speed, which is a lot slower than someone giving their full attention to their surroundings. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “An estimated 2,700 young people die each year as a result of driving under the influence of alcohol and 282,000 are treated in emergency rooms for injuries suffered in motor-vehicle crashes.” Remember there is an average of 3,000 deaths annually because of texting while driving. That is 300 more fatalities than drunk driving. Jacob Masters, an author for Brain Injury Society, states, “Drivers who are texting while behind the wheel have a 23% higher chance of causing a crash. That is equivalent to downing four beers and then getting behind the wheel.” When someone is texting and driving, he/she eyes aren’t on the road and aren’t aware of his/her surroundings. On the other hand, when someone is drunk driving he/she is somewhat aware of her/his surroundings even though reaction time is a lot slower. Therefore, texting while driving is just as dangerous as driving while intoxicated if not more. Texting while driving may not be outlawed yet, but it is definitely something that needs to be. Too many people are taking advantage of it and getting “used to” doing it. With no doubt, texting while driving should be a primary offense because it is downright awful, dangerous, and foolish. The death rate has increased, and it has become equivalent, if not worse, than drunk driving. The next time you pick up your phone to send a message, think about the people you are putting in danger, think about your family, and think about yourself. Do you really want to commit to sending that message if it costs a