Title : “Why drowsy driving should be illegal in the state of California.”
“John died in his sleep. He was warm, comfortable, and doing 70 miles per hour on the motorway”(Fatigue:THINK!:Roadsafety. (N.d.). Retrieved from http://think.direct.gov.uk/fatigue.html). Should drowsy driving be mandated as a criminal offense in the state of California? Few people realize the explicit dangers of drowsy driving. Consider the following scenario: Darkness surrounds your car on the drive home after a late night at the office. There is no light on the two-lane highway except for occasional flashes from the headlights of oncoming traffic. Your eyelids are heavy. You yawn. Your head begins to bob. As you shake your head from side to side trying
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The lateness of the hour was evident when the announcement “we now conclude our broadcast day” was made around 2 a.m. while the Star Spangled Banner played in the background. Television stations remained off the air until about 5 a.m. and people actually went to bed. Contrast this to today when there are “late shows”, “late late shows” and thanks to cable and satellite media, programming is available around the clock. (Freerepublic.com). Many times television has become the background noise while surfing the internet, texting on mobile phones, or answering emails, a phenomenon known as second screen viewing. Especially since the 21st century, and the dawn of the digital age, Americans are trying to fit more into their already overloaded schedules. When they can’t do everything in a 24 hour period, they carve the extra time out of sleep time.(thecharts.cnn.com). The 24/7 availability of media contributes to today 's problem of sleep deprivation. The rising incidences of drowsy driving accidents and deaths coincides with the evolution of the digital lifestyle in our modern society. Most drivers are not getting enough sleep each night, in part driven by the compelling need to stay connected around the clock and their addiction to electronic devices. Others experience sleep deprivation when they find themselves at work during a time normally reserved for sleep. …show more content…
before people are exposed to criminal penalty they deserve fair notice of what conduct is lawful and what is not. There is no measurable scale for drowsiness. Will the police be allowed to pull people over who appear too tired? There is no test for drowsiness. How will the arresting officer present evidence that the driver was guilty of driving drowsy? How can you enforce such a law? What proof is there that negligence took place?..........driving while sleepy should be a criminal offense. How likely are drivers to admit they are fatigued once the are aware of the potential for criminal prosecution?
(Point 2 counterpoint)driving while sleepy should be a criminal offense
Drivers do not fall asleep without warning. If a driver consciously decides to drive without the ability to remain alert they are putting themselves and others at risk in the same way that those who text and drive or drink and drive do, with the consequences just as devastating. Therefore, it should be treated the same by
I think that it is agreed by all parties that the prodigious number of sober drivers in our neighborhoods, city streets, and country roads is at present deplorable to the state of our great nation. Currently, a whopping ninety-eight percent of Americans of driving age feel threatened by those who drive under the influence of alcohol, which means that only two percent of Americans are able to fully relax and enjoy themselves while on the road, and with the growing awareness, this number could be on the rise (MADD Online: General Statistics 1). What a travesty! All drivers, and passengers alike, should be put at the same risk for danger, be it damage, injury, or death.
Distracted driving includes not only texting and calling, but also eating, navigation, and conversing with passengers. (Idaho Transportation Department). This is a serious problem, and danger to not only ourselves, but those around us. On any given day between when the
Hello, today I would like to start off by telling you a story. Three years ago on a trip coming back from Hot Springs, my friend and I were in a car accident. My friend had dozed off, and when I looked up to see what was going on we were in the other lane. We swerved out of the way but still hit the vehicle in front of us. I sustained a broken right leg and two dislocated fingers. My friend and the other driver sustained only minor injuries. I now have a titanium rod in my leg and can’t run long distances. This is something that happens too often. How often have you gotten off work after going to school and taking care of all the daily things that are necessary and you were exhausted? Two or three times a week, maybe more? All of us have things that make us tired. Drowsy driving is dangerous, but it is something preventable. Today, I would like to convince you to not drive while drowsy by stating the problems/dangers of driving while
Driving under influence or with high blood alcohol content (BAC) increases the risk of car accidents, vehicular deaths, and more so highway injuries across all age-groups. In fact, an intoxicated driver with relatively higher BAC increases his/her risk of death by up to 380 times in single-vehicle crash (DeMichele, Lowe & Payne, 2014). Drunk driving is often considered as the largest social problem in the modern day society since 40 to 45% of all fatal traffic accidents usually involve drunk drivers. While 16 is the average blood alcohol content among some seriously injured drinking drivers, the culture of driving under influence can only be stopped through the development of a plausible plan to prevent it (Sloan, Eldred & Xu, 2014).
Drivers that take road trips and drivers happen to work late night shifts are the tops contributors to sleep related car crashes. People that plan on driving for long periods of time should stop once they feel too tired and get a hotel room.
Commercial truck-related collisions remains to be the prominent cause of death on Ontario roads, with one in five road crashes involving large truck vehicles (Best, 2017). Behind a vast majority of the crashes, there is a fatigue driver who lost control of the steering due to insufficient sleep and inattentiveness. According to studies, sleep deprivation is the primary risk factor of accidents involving transport trucks (National Transportation Safety Board, 1995). If sleepless night becomes a routine for transport drivers, it can possibly lead to long-term sleep deprivation and the associated health risk. Health risk associated with sleep deprivation are heart attack, depression, anxiety, weight gain and death. Most common health risk experienced
Driving while intoxicated or drunk is very dangerous resulting in injuries and even death. This is a huge national problem that can be prevented from happening. “Statistics reveal that most related accidents are the leading cause of death for the ages between 16-24.” (Hanson) Many teens and early adults are peer pressured to drink and end up driving intoxicated or drunk. When driving intoxicated, your short term memory and at often times your reflex is also impaired so you don’t have that quick response to go from pressing the gas pedal to your brakes or from swerving. Therefore, drinking and driving is a cycle that will never end. However, we can address this by stopping drunk drivers by making cabs mandatory at any location when needed, sobriety check points, and alcohol education classes.
“Each year in the United States, 4.9 million driver distraction related crashes kill approximately 34,400 people, cause 2.1 million injuries and trigger as much as $184 billion in property damage.” (Sundeen, 2008). The United States has millions of distracted driver crashes. The crashes cost millions of dollars for people being in hospital, damages of their property and also the lives of people. Distracted driving should be not allowed.
What is the first thing you do when you start the car? Do you put on your seatbelt, or how about plug your phone into the radio to listen to music? Or maybe you turn on Maps and get direction to where you are going. Do you ever get a notification, text or call when you are driving and just instinctively pick up your phone and before you know it you are looking at it. This is really common and everyone has done it at least once, I know I have many times. It is hard to completely ignore your phone when driving and everyone has felt this pain. This is why distracted driving is rising. We are constantly on our phone to the point of when we are not supposed to be on it, we still find a way. The state of Wisconsin actually does quite a bit to try and prevent distracted driving from happening, but can we really put the blame on their shoulders when an accident happens? The state does not
"TEENS, SLEEP DEPRIVATION AND AUTOMOBILE CRASHES . N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2014 (Farm Bureau News)
the drowsiness and the impairment can get the vehicle out of control and may cause risk even
The people who slept the least were 21% more likely to have been involved in a crash than those who got more sleep. Increasingly so on the weekends, the percent becomes 55%. A survey published by The AAA Foundation found 1 in 7 licensed drivers from the ages 16-24 admits they had fallen asleep at least once while driving in the past year and that 10% of all drivers say they’ve dozed off at the wheel. According to the NHTSA 1 in 6 crashes with a fatality was caused by a drowsy driver, . It’s a global problem affecting all drivers, it’s report that between 5%-30% of crashes are attributed to fatigue. It’s an issue to commonly overlook and needs to be taken more seriously in our
Driving is a major responsibility, just like having access to a phone. When these two mix, scary things can happen. For the safety of everyone on the road, many states have made cell pone use while driving illegal. I believe this was a very good decision on behalf of those areas, because using a cell phone shouldn't be a priority while behind the wheel and it is a very dangerous act. First of all, while on the road drivers already have a lot of multitasking to do, between their own actions, and those of other drivers. Drivers have to pay attention to their mirrors, their speedometer, their blind spots, and everything going on around them; whether it be a parent with kids in the backseat, or friends on the way to a sports game.
Lack of sleep may cause an accident. As you get drowsy, your reaction becomes slow as much as driving drunk.
These prevention methods are simple ways to inflict greater penalties against those who believe that driving under the influence is not a substantial deal, because it is. In 2014, almost 10,000 Americans were killed in driving under the influence accidents, making up about a third of all traffic related deaths that year (“Impaired”). This number excludes the people involved in driving under the influence accidents that survived, and the family, friends, or communities affected. It is heartbreaking to observe that people today are selfish enough to think only of themselves and what they want. Placing oneself behind the wheel of a vehicle while under the influence is bound to come with consequences eventually. The best way to avoid these consequences is to take oneself out of the situation to begin with. Finding a ride home with a sober driver, calling a cab or a friend, or simply staying where you are at and find a place to crash for the night nearby are the easiest ways influenced driving can be avoided. Nonetheless, there are people who require more action to be taken. The lengthening of time spent in jail, the increase of fines, and the use of ignition interlock devices will force more of these people to rethink their actions and abstain from operating a vehicle