Distracted Driving Research Paper

Words: 1106
Pages: 5

The Dangers of Distracted Driving Every day approximately eight fatalities take place linked to crashes involving a distracted driver, with 3,100 lives lost and 324,000 individuals injured in 2020. Our laws across the country have only slightly changed and most have such a small fine that people do not take seriously. According to pewresearchcenter.org, in November of 2004, 65% of adults owned a cell phone. Over time, this number rapidly increased up to 97% as of 2021. The largest and fastest-growing aspect of distracted driving is the use of cell phones. Part of the problem is notifications. With cell phones playing a large part of daily activity, many people feel the necessity to check their phones while driving whenever they feel a buzz …show more content…
Education has historically proven to be extremely effective, and distracted driving is no exception. C. S. Mott Children's Hospital at the University of Michigan has created an acronym to remind drivers of safe practices called S-M-A-R-T. S stands for stay focused on driving. This means staying away from distractions such as phones, the radio, or car play systems, not using any other technology, and keeping eyes on the road at all times. M stands for make preparations before driving. The driver should be completely comfortable, seatbelt on, music, and air conditioning ready to go before driving. A stands for Avoid other activities. This includes reaching for an item, checking out a billboard, or any activity that takes the driver's eyes off the road. R stands for relying on passengers for tasks such as texting someone back, altering the air conditioning, or changing the radio station. Having a passenger do this is much safer than attempting to multitask while driving. T stands for text/ talk later. It is not worth putting anyone's life at …show more content…
Creating it within the school system should motivate students to pass the class even more as it affects their grades. Driving is not a simple concept. There is a reason that fatal crashes take place each day. Instructing on the ways of our roads is complex and a longer course will help students completely understand driving. Distracted driving is not a new problem, but a growing problem. So many innocent people die each year from others driving while using their phones. Distracted driving crashes have increased in number annually for over twenty years now. In 2018, there were 400,000 people injured in crashes caused by texting and driving. Even though it is one of the leading causes of death in the United States, there isn’t much being done about it. A common viewpoint is that current laws will have a beneficial effect as distracted drivers will be fined and will drive safer, but deaths and injuries are still increasing each year and for laws to have a stronger effect, stricter laws need to be put in place rather than just small fines. Despite several new laws across the United States, the results are