Effects of Texting While Driving

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A word has started to appear in discussions of driving. The word is "distracted." It refers to drivers who pay more attention to their cell phones, or their text messages, than they do to driving. The results can be fatal. One of the most common distractions today is texting. Each day in the United States, 9 people are killed and more than 1,060 people are injured in crashes that are reported to involve a distracted driver (Center). A couple of months ago, I and a friend were sitting at a red light waiting on green. We were talking about making plans for later that evening. We decided what to do as soon as the light turned green, we waited on the car in front of us to ease off the line. Then we were hit. This turned into a five car pileup. The driver of the fifth car back was texting at the red light; he hit the gas too quick and ended up hitting the next car, pushing them into the next, and so on. When the officer got there he questioned the man. The man admitted to texting behind the wheel, said he thought the light was green, and hit the gas. Three people were critically injured due to texting. “Texting is a very dangerous distraction, it is now more common than drinking and driving” (Gozzi). We all know drinking and driving is a very serious thing, but so is texting while driving. As a society, we just don’t see it that way. The first text message was sent on December 3, 1992. This message simply said “Merry Christmas”. After this became known, it is extremely common, not only in the United States, but worldwide. “Over six billion text messages are a day just in the United States” (CNN). After 21 years the growth of texting is slowing down. Texting while driving isn’t the only distraction behind the wheel, but is a very comm... ... middle of paper ... .... Questia. Web. 22 Nov. 2013. Center for Disease Control and Prevention: Impaired Driving: Get the Facts. http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/impaired_driving/impaired-drv_factsheet.html CNN: Cable News Network: OMG, the Text Message Turns 21. http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/03/tech/mobile/sms-text-message-20/?c=&page=0 Gozzi, Raymond. "Distracted." Et Cetera 68.1 (2011): 110+. Questia. Web. 22 Nov. 2013. Lennon, Ron, Randall Rentfro, and Bay O'Leary. "Social Marketing and Distracted Driving Behaviors among Young Adults: The Effectiveness of Fear Appeals." Academy of Marketing Studies Journal 14.2 (2010): 95+. Questia. Web. 22 Nov. 2013. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Facts and Statistics. http://www.distraction.gov/content/get-the-facts/facts-and-statistics.html

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