Epidemic of the 21st Century
Everything is digital in the modern world. A single tap on your phone can start your car, lock your house, and place an order for dinner. People are always just a phone call or text away. However, our lives are in greater risk than ever in this high-tech, instant gratification environment. It is estimated that 75% of serious teen driver accidents are caused by 'critical errors,'... one being distracted by something inside or outside the vehicle,' like texting and driving, according to Accident Analysis and Prevention (Curry). A growing number of data points to the seriousness and devastation of this epidemic. Slow but steady progress is being made in the fight against texting while driving. However, the issue persists. Keeping up the pressure for a nationwide ban on all handheld devices in all vehicles for all drivers could be a big solution here.
My own personal experience has shown me how dangerous texting and driving can be. My best buddy perished in an automobile accident on July 18, 2010. A drunk motorist was not to blame for Rachel's death. She wasn't speeding, and she wasn't hit by a drunken idiotic adolescent. While walking back to her hotel to eat, she was approached by a man who asked her for money. She and her family were on a trip to California. I was bored at the pool in Nashville and decided to text her. "Hey babe!" was all I could muster. In my heart, I miss you:) The fact that "more than 20% of fatal car incidents involving minors have been caused by cell phone use" wasn't even on my radar when she was behind the wheel (Choquette). My best buddy died in a vehicle crash with her phone still in her lap, and I didn't find out about it for another nine hours.
Rachel began texting back when she discovered she had a text two blocks from her hotel, according to the police report. That's when she allegedly overcorrected to avoid oncoming traffic after drifting into the opposite lane. When she hit a building head-on after hitting a palm tree, she knocked out power to four other buildings. Traffic was backed up for hours as a result of the call to the police. Life Flight was dispatched, but arrived too late. Meetings and lunches with friends were disrupted by those who were late or disgruntled. I was at home, waiting for a text from a friend, when I discovered that I would never see her name again on my phone. It was nine hours later. I never would have met her if she invited me to join her for a round of tennis. My best friend would never return to my life. Rachel was one of almost 2,700 16–19-year-olds died in car accidents in the United States in 2010 (see "Fatality"). As a child, I never imagined she'd become a statistic that terrified me. I'm only now beginning to grasp the gravity of these numbers.
New studies on text-related accidents appear to pop up every few months. Texting and driving statistics abound right now on Google, and each one is more horrifying than the last. According to data compiled by the law firm of Edgar Snyder & Associates, cell phone use was the cause of 21 percent of fatal auto accidents involving youths aged 16 to 19. This number was predicted to rise by up to 4% annually ("Cell Phone"). Facts of the same kind are similarly alarming. Distracted driving is responsible for approximately 6,000 deaths and 500,000 injuries each year. A young driver's reaction time can be slowed down to the level of a 70-year-old while using a mobile phone while driving, and in 2009, 867 people lost their lives in car accidents as a result of distracted driving caused by cell phones ("Cell Phone") Texting and driving has been shown to significantly impair and negatively impact a driver's ability to operate a motor vehicle. In a recent study, "21 juvenile drivers were given a simulated drive while using an MP3 player and a cell phone for texting. The study's participants who texted and listened to music on their players while driving fared the worst. In a really horrible way. It was as though they were running over virtual pedestrians as they swerved in and out of traffic. (Choquette).
Our options are limited. While banning all handheld gadgets while driving is the apparent solution, we are not there yet. Our country is making progress, thanks to a few forward-thinking government officials and an endless stream of studies, which should keep us moving in the right path.
Representative Carolyn McCarthy is only one of the numerous progressive members of Congress. She wants a national ban on texting and driving to be enacted:"
In order to keep our roadways safe, government must respond to the spread of smartphones," "The former nurse and current member of Congress, Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, has made public health and safety a major focus of her career. "We can save lives and reduce injuries in the United States by enforcing some common-sense restrictions that are already in place in some areas of the country. The Safe Drivers Act, introduced by the House Republican majority, should help make our roadways safer. (United States)
A hand-held cell phone ban has now been implemented in 10 states, the District of Columbia (DC), Guam, and the Virgin Islands, as well as 32 states and DC prohibiting all cell phone usage by rookie drivers (National Highway). Georgia is one state where many things can be done better even though these feel like major successes. Georgia's law against texting while driving went into effect on July 1, 2010, and state data show that less than 50 persons a month had been convicted of the violation, totaling 1,281 convictions as of Sept. 17." This may be due to the fact that the legislation is difficult to implement and is unknown to the general population. According to an article in Teen Driver Source, there are a number of remedies, including better education for all law enforcement, publicizing the real-world repercussions of the laws, and educating the public to raise awareness of the problem and danger of texting while driving.
Texting and driving has become a major issue in the struggle to keep the United States and its citizens safe in recent years. Studies have demonstrated the seriousness of this new epidemic, and both law enforcement and the general public have improved their awareness of it. In order to assure the safety of all motorists, one important objective must still be achieved: a statewide ban on all portable devices in all automobiles, for all drivers. The light at the end of the tunnel is becoming brighter, but we're not there yet. Just a few more seconds of focus on the road will reveal it.