Dupreme Cannie English III Mrs. Bailey 22 March 2013 Driving Distractions Have you ever been driving down the road and saw someone texting and driving? What about reading and driving? Or even applying make-up and driving? Driving distractions are plentiful, but it is up to the driver to focus on the task at hand. “Distractions cause many accidents for both new and experienced drivers. Taking your eyes off the road for even a few seconds, could have disastrous results” (“Teendriving. com”).
Whether an individual has been driving for many years, or mere days, they are still at risk for distractions. Regardless of age or experience, if a person takes their eyes off the road, the results could be fatal. As previously mentioned, “Laws restricting cell phone use by drivers may be fashionable, but it is not the best way for the government to make roads safer. Eating, leaning over to change the radio station, talking and reading while driving are bigger culprits than cell phones when it comes to causing accidents, yet, no one is clamoring for legislation outlawing these distractions.
To solve the problem of cell phone users disobeying traffic laws, government officials must insist on personal responsibility, rather than ban cell phone use behind the wheel. Those insisting drivers have the right to talk on their phones should be applauded for recognizing that, while people are annoyed by drivers who are distracted by telephone conversations, prohibition of cell phones is needless” (Wilson). Cell phone use is not the only issue. While texting and talking on the phone while driving are dangerous, eating, drinking, reading, and many other activities are still just as dangerous.
Compare and Contrast Driving in the Winter and Driving in the Summer
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If laws are going to be passed to prevent cell phone use while driving, then they must prevent the other distracting activities. Even though some people think driving and cell phone use is acceptable, people shouldn’t be texting or talking on the phone while driving because distractions can kill a person without noticing it and turning off your cell phone wouldn’t be a distraction. To keep people from being distracted while driving, the government needs to make the laws stricter. The Pennsylvania cell phone texting ban does not extend to situations where the vehicle is not moving, such as at a stop light or while you are stopped in traffic. It also allows for using a phone hands-free through integration with Bluetooth (such as using Siri on the iPhone to compose and send texts). Interestingly, since the ban overrides any local ordinances already in place, it will actually reduce cell phone restrictions in cities such as Philadelphia, where a local law bans all handheld cell phone use”(Chittom).