The Issue of Cell Phones while Driving - Case Study Example

Banning of Cell Phones while Driving Affiliation with more information about affiliation, research grants, conflict of interest and how to contact Banning of Cell Phones while Driving The exponential growth of mobile technology has elevated the popularity of cell phones to such a high level that the number of people using the utility has more than tripled in the last decade. According to Nielsen (2010) Media Industry Fact Sheet, the estimated cell phone users in the United States as of 2010 have grown to more than 223 million. Moreover, cell phones have become a part of everyday life for most Americans because many people use their phones to as a platform to support daily business activities and transactions. Unfortunately, most of this daily business occurs while the person is on the move, driving a vehicle. As a result, accidents occur due to people using their cellular phone while driving and losing their attention on the road. This has entailed in several road mishaps, many involving loss of human lives and damage to property. The issue, thus, has attained high priority in the American society and motorists using mobile phones to talk and text while driving is receiving national attention. Considering the gravity of the issue, many states are passing legislation to ban cell phone use while driving automobiles.The issue has kicked off a lot of debates whether use of cell phones should be allowed while driving. Considering the large sale of accidents, most of which result in loss of precious human lives, people should be banned from talking or texting on hand-held or hands-free mobile devices while driving in every state because they become visually, manually and cognitively distracted when they engage in such activities, which causes the accidents. The first type driver distraction is visual, which occurs when the motorists take their eyes off the road and focus on extraneous activities. One of the main causes of visual distraction is when drivers use a cell phone to send and receive text messages. Moreover, when drivers remain distracted by mobile phones, their capability to control a vehicle becomes reduced and as a result their response time to any immediate danger increases. Research done by Virginia Tech Transportation Institute finds that when a driver sends a text message, his or her eyes remain off the road nearly 4.6 seconds, enough time to cover the length of a football field when the vehicle is traveling at 55 miles an hour. The research has further shown that people who text while driving are 23 times more likely to have an accident.“Texting” refers to sending and receiving electronic messages through the use of a wireless communications device. Crashes occurring due to distraction from driving kill thousands of people each year, because the attention of drivers does not remain on the road while operating a vehicle. For instance, a driver talking on a cell phone ran a red light and hit a vehicle killing a 61 year old woman, in Oklahoma City. When Oklahoma state police questioned the driver and asked why he ran a red light, the driver replied that he was talking on his cell phone and did not see the light change. This is just one of many accidents caused by motorist using cell phones while driving. It is not an exaggeration to say that a majority of accidents could be avoided if drivers avoid using cell phones while driving. An instance of driver inattention on the road due to manual distraction happens when a person takes his or her hands off the steering wheel. Manual distractions can also occur in other ways, such as turning to a radio station or eating while maneuvering the wheel. However, in the recent past, it has mostly happened when drivers remove their hands from the steering wheel in order to talk or listen on hand-held mobile phones. Consequently, the driver may not be able to respond quickly enough to avoid a collision or swerve off when he or he or she notices a vehicle on the path. Research by Virginia Tech Transportation Institute has also found that text messaging requires manual and visual attention at the same time from the driver. For this reason, one the most dangerous activities is to use text messaging on a cell phone while operating a vehicle. Any non-driving activity someone engages in while driving a vehicle is a distraction and it increases their chance of getting involved in an accident. Regardless of the high risk of being in an accident there are still some drivers who insist on indulging in such dangerous activities. As a result, text messaging has become one of the leading causes of car crashes in many states. Research has also proved that it is hazardous to text message and driving at the same time because it visually and manually distracts the person from safely operating a vehicle. Furthermore, many states and agencies including wireless industries have now recognized the dangers of text messaging and the need for laws banning its use while driving. The final cause of motorist inattention is cognitive distraction, which occurs when the person’s mind is not on the primary task of driving. Many drivers believe that physical contact with a mobile phone is the cause for most driving accidents. Although physical contact with a mobile phone is a factor in car crashes, the primary danger is talking on the phone itself. According to Psychologists David Strayer of University of Utah, hands-free devices are just as dangerous as hand-held phones because the conversation itself causes cognitive distraction known as inattention blindness to motorists. Research undertaken by the University of Utah has shown that inattention blindness occurs when drivers are unable to process visual information. Studies have also shown that a motorist is unable to process visual information because their brain is multitasked on driving and talking on cell phones at the same time. Furthermore, multitasking is a process that the human brain is incapable of doing safely while driving. As a result, cognitive distracted motorist, using hands-free mobiles, will look at the road but fail to observe an estimated 55 percent of their driving environment. The above research has also demonstrated that a passenger talking to the driver cannot be considered as a case of cognitive distraction and cannot be compared to a hands-free device. For example, a passenger acts as another set of eyes and he or she can warn a driver. Many states have enacted laws banning hand-held devices while operating a motor vehicle because drivers become visually and manually distracted. However, no states have passed legislation banning hands-free devices, because many people are unaware that it distracts the driver from a cognitive perspective. In essence, if every state would ban drivers from using cell phones, there would be much less accidents on the road and, thus, more lives could be saved. Moreover, there are some states that have laws against motorists using cell phones while driving. However, many others are yet to enact any laws that ban the use of mobile phones while driving. Some motorists argue that laws banning wireless devices will prevent them from using a cell phone in emergency situations. However, this seems to be a lame excuse because laws banning cell phones will not prevent the driver from carrying a mobile phone and using it while safely parked off the road. Despite this, if there are no state laws prohibiting people from using a mobile phone while driving, it is still the responsibility of every motorist to guarantee the safety of others while on the road. It also appears that if people become more aware of the repercussions of the problem, such accidents can be avoided to a great extent. In the absence of recognition of this issue from the motorists, the government will have no option but to enact appropriate laws and ensure their stringent implementation. Read More