Name: DeVeine Parks
From: Hampton, GA
Votes: 0
Safety
is one of the most essential factors that one should look at while
driving a vehicle.
Distracted driving can be extremely dangerous and result in accidents
with effects ranging from minor vehicle damage to a totaled
car and devastating injuries. Increasingly, distracted driving
results in fatalities. Each
day in the United States, approximately 9 people are killed and more
than 1,000 injured in crashes that are reported to involve a
distracted driver. That’s a thousand people that can be alive living
their best life, but was short ended due to a text, snap, or email.
Each
state has its own set of laws when it comes to distracted driving. It
is important to check what the laws and penalties are in your state
or any state where you plan to drive.
Multiple
states have put in laws about cell-phone distractions in an effort to
improve road safety. Fifteen
states prohibit all drivers from using hand-held cell phones while
driving. Which are all primary enforcement laws, a police officer may
cite a driver for using a phone in hand without any other reason. We
need to make that country wide, we need to take measures on the
number of deaths due to destracts. Although, People who use their
cell phones while driving are by far the most common reason for
distracted driving accidents. There are three other types of
distraction: Visual: taking your eyes off the road; Manual: taking
your hands off the wheel; and Cognitive: taking your mind off of
driving. Texting and driving is the most dangerous because it
incorporates all three.
I
know from first hand that distracted driving can cause death and
injuries. My mom and older sister have both been in accidents due to
distracted driving. In which one cases the settlement money ended up
not being quite enough. Which led to my mom being in debt from being
out of work and having to pay her medical and household bills. Even
though my mom had back injuries, she still got up bright and early
for work with no complaining. Which made me think of her as a
stronger woman because she never came home angry or frustrated. At
that point I realized driving was not a game, that it’s not cool to
make videos while you drive. Nor is it cool to drive, tweet, or
scroll while you drive, because in a split second you can end
someone’s life or cause major distress and injuries.
Anything
that takes your attention away from driving can be a distraction.
Sending a text message, talking on a cell phone, using a navigation
system, and eating while driving are all activities of distracted
driving. Any of these distractions can endanger the driver and
others. One way I will ensure safe driving is hands free of any
technical device such as but not limited to; GPS, radio, cellphones.
Secondly, less talking more attentive of roads and traffic. It’s
only natural to talk to passengers, but you always have to remember
that paying attention to the road comes first. Lastly but certainly
not least, music volume. Loud music decreases a driver’s ability to
react to sudden movements and make decisions, according to a latest
research, which common in teens and young adults. Remember, driving
is a privilege, and your decisions do not affect only you but other
people on the road, too.
