Cell Phones and Driving: How to Aviod the Deadly Consequences

Nowadays, using electronics while driving is a major problem, especially for teenagers. Thousands of deaths every year can be attributed to distracted driving. Although new technology has been invented to stop the use of electronics while driving, none of them are completely effective. To reduce the number of accidents, whether major or minor, we must enact critical change soon.

Educating teens about the risks of using their phone and driving distracted can help influence them make better decisions. Increased education on subjects such as sex education, alchohol, and drugs have reduced the chance of negative outcomes by up to 50%. Based on the success of the increased education of these topics, a similar approach could be taken to distracted driving. It is especially important to teach children from a young age the dangers of distracted driving, so it is ingrained in them that distracted driving is harmful and unacceptable. Talking one-on-one to a child about the risks of using their cell phone while driving can help them to realize the dangers of their decisions. They must realize that the consequences of their actions go beyond themselves.

In my opinion, there are two ways to help stop distracted driving, by offering incentives to teens, or for the teens to receive repercussions. By incentivizing teens to stop driving distracted, they are less likely to do so. For example, an insurance agency may offer a discount on the monthly insurance premium for teens who demonstrate they do not drive distracted. As a result, many teens would put their cell phones down in order to receive the discount. The same insurance company can enforce a consequence for driving distracted by increasing their monthly insurance premium. If this approach was adopted by insurance companies, we may see a decrease in the number of accidents due to distracted driving.

Certain apps and downloads on teens’ phones may also be a solution to electronic use while driving. Apps that disable social media, texting, and other communication apps while driving would be beneficial. By disabling these apps, the problem is directly eliminated, because teens can no longer drive while texting or using social media. Another app that can solve this problem is an app designed solely to contact emergency personnel or emergency contacts while disabling the use of any other apps. An app or download similar to this would allow for the prevention of texting or using social media while driving, but would still allow for the contact of emergency services in case of an accident or crisis.

Although distracted driving cannot be completely eradicated, we must do something to lower the amount of teens texting and driving. As technology and electronics develop, the amount of distracted driving increases, and because of this, it is so extremely important to continue to educate and prevent the use of cell phones when driving in advance. At the end of the day, it’s not only the teens who are affected by their reckless decisions, but the innocent people injured by their choice to drive distracted. By increasing education of the consequences of distracted driving and introducing new technology such as apps, we can severely decrease the amount of teen fatalities from cell phone use while driving.