Texting While Driving

Texting And Driving

Texting While Driving Article 1
The growth of the usage of mobile phones has increased drastically since the last decade.To many, it has almost become an addiction.Unfortunately the service is so convinient that, Calling ,talking ,texting on cell phones go on and on and on, all the time, any where and every where. Use of a cell phone while driving is one of the most dangerous disadvantages of today's modern life style.

Driving is an activity which needs full concentration.Even the smallest distraction may cause an accident.Recent statistics show that texting while driving is one of the major cause of accidents in the world.Texting takes 5 seconds to take off your eyes from the road and its more than sufficient for a devastation. It is scary to know that a study in 2008 showed that at any given time during the day light hours more than 800000 vehicles were driven by some one using a hand- held cell phones.Only knowing the statistics doesn't solve the problem, lets all pledge today and now that we are not and will not be one among them.

Every body already knows that texting while driving is dangerous but they still do it . Doing this, one risks his/her life and puts others lives in danger as well. Every individual,society,community and strict laws should combine their efforts together and work collectively towards controling and solving this problem.

As vibrant and responsible citizens of our country, all the teenagers, adults, community workers, law makers , law protectors should join hands together to put a complete end to 'texting while driving'.

Our safety is the most important thing in life nothing else matters more.Lets follow the list of 'Dos' and 'Don't' while driving.

List of Dos
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As a driver
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Take a pledge today and now that you will never text while driving.

Switch off the phones when you are driving.

If its urgent avd necessary to call or message , pull your vehicle off the road, stop and then do it.Dont forget to switch it off again.

If somebody else is with you ask him to take your call or read your message loudly for you.

Recognize that texting is your habit, take support from your friends to break this habit.

Try to over power your urge and temptation to text while driving. you can do it.

Learn about the legal information, rules and regulations.

Don'ts
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Do not surrender yourself to your urge of texting while you drive..You will notice , its not difficult.

Do not ever keep your phone on or else you might get tempted to answer the call.

As a parent
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Discuss with your child, the danger involved with texting while driving.

Tell them about the consiquences and legal problems involved.

Review your chilld's call phone and see if he was messaging when he was likely to be driving.

Let him know that you are keeping a watch on this activity.

Make sure that he obeys your instructions.

Don'ts
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Do not call your child when you know he is likely to drive.

Do not ignore his habit of texting while driving . This time he is lucky but next time he may not be.

As a community
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Organise frequent lectures and seminar on this topic.It increases the public awareness.

Lectures on legal side involved with safety on roads can help people.

In social gatherings you can discuss this issue with your friends .Repeated reminders have positive impact on the person.

If you notice any of your friends doing it, its your duty to call him and ask him to stop it.

Don'ts
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Do not avoid attending such seminars or lectures, knowing about the law is for your own benefit.

As law makers
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In recent years most of the countries have implemented laws on 'texting while driving'.India is one among them but yet to implement in all the states, Delhi and Andhra pradesh are a few to name where cell phones are banned.According to the Motor vehicle act its a punishable offence.Fine of Rs 2000 or 6 months imprisonment is awarded. Laws differ from country to country. In some places hand- less cell phones are allowed and its banned only for minors and new license holders.

Strict and tough laws are required to stop texting while driving. public should think twice before breaking the law.

If caught, one should be fined or punished for it.

As law protectors
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It is the traffic police responsibility to keep proper vigilence over the drivers.

Implementation and application of the law is much more important than making laws.

Put bold posters on the street about the negative effects of texting while driving.

use of monitoring device system will help in catching the offenders.

Be strict to them so that they will be afraid to repeat the mistake.

Don'ts
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Do not be mild with them or else if once left unpunished, they become more daring and may repeat the mistake.

Police should not take bribe and let the people go free.This encourages them to do it again. Next time texting while driving may lead to an accident.

Conclusion
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Genuine collective efforts of every individual to stop 'Texting while driving' will surely reduce the number of accidents to the minimum. Be alert and be aware of your responsibilities on the road, towards your ownself and the society. While driving, always remember that your loved ones are waiting for you at home.

Anjali Luktuke

Texting While Driving Article 2
"Accidents and particularly street and highway accidents, do not happen - they are caused" - Ernest Greenwood

The above quote by Ernest Greenwood, very aptly complies with the topic, 'Texting While Driving'. Usage of cellphone in any form - whether texting, conversing or e-mailing - has become one of the leading causes of road accidents in today's scenario.
From a luxury in the 1980's, when the mobile phones had just stepped into our lives as a sweet, smart, humble servant, readily available in our hour of need, it has got a strong foothold i n our day-to-day life and has made us completely dependent on it. It has made itself indispensable and we can't imagine our life without it's presence. It has become a necessity.

It has gradually improved it's appearance as well. From a bulky and expensive gadget, available only to the elites of society, it has become a sleek and inexpensive item, which is now affordable by a person with even minimal wages. Whether one is walking down the street, riding a two-wheeler or driving a car, everyone has one thing common - a cell phone in hand. It's utility is undeniable, but it's hazards are no less.

The youth in particular, is glued to it day in and day out. It seems they can't even breathe without their beloved cell phone. The data all over the world shows that most of the road accidents caused by the young drivers, were found to be using their cellphones in some form while driving, be it texting or conversing.

Driving is demanding and needs 100% attention, and using cell phones divides that attention. A considerable number of studies have examined how cell phone usage while driving affects various aspects of our driving performance - it impairs perceptual and decision-making tasks. It also leads to fatigue and induces higher stress levels. It also hampers a driver's reaction speed to emergencies. These studies have shown that the risk of being involved in a collision is four times higher when using a cell phone while driving.

There is also evidence to suggest that cell phone usage while driving causes greater risks to accident prone drivers, especially the young and the elderly. As the use of cell phones is growing so rapidly, they are likely to become a major cause for the increase in road crashes.

We have all been caught behind those motorists who are all over the road. You can see vehicles swerving, driving slower than they should, besides other irregular driving behaviors. One would probably notice such driving from intoxicated motorists. However, these destructive driving habits are now attributes associated with a brand-new brand of distracted driving - text messages.

SAFETY MEASURES:
"It is better to lose one minute of life than losing life in a minute".
Safety is not just a slogan, it is a way of life. It is better to prepare and prevent than to repair and repent.
Therefore it is better that certain safety measures are undertaken to avoid the uncalled for happenings :

1. Flashing the 'ill effects of texting while driving' on big billboards.

2. Data of number of accidents - small or serious due to cell phone usage to be shown.

3. Confiscating the driving license of a driver using his cell phone while driving, for a minimum duration of 3 months.

4.Talks and interactive sessions should be held in schools and college. The young minds should be conditioned to not use cell phones while driving as safety is not a gadget, but a state of mind.

At least 35 countries, plus many states or districts within countries have introduced legislation to prohibit drivers from using cell phones while driving and several more countries are considering such legislations.

We now have unshakable conviction that accident causes are man-made and that a man made problem can be solved by man himself. So it is up to us to decide how we solve this problem of texting while driving, before this epidemic spreads farther.

By Uma Korla

Texting While Driving Article 3
Short message services(SMS) are developing very rapidly throughout the world.

A study by a University of South Carolina psychology researcher featured in the journal, Experimental Psychology, found that planning to speak and speaking put far more demands on the brain’s resources than listening. Measurement of attention levels showed that subjects were four times more distracted while preparing to speak or speaking than when they were listening.

Texting has become a social norm fairly quickly since the year 2000, as most cell phone plans include a text messaging package. There has been a significant rise in smart phone sales with the popularity of the BlackBerry and iPhone, which allows people to communicate while they are doing practically anything.

But, Due to the number of accidents that are related to cell phone use while driving, some jurisdictions have made the use of a cell phone while driving illegal. Others have enacted laws to ban handheld mobile phone use, but allow use of a handsfree device. In some cases restrictions are only directed to minors or those who are newly qualified license holders.

Despite the acknowledgement of the dangers of texting behind the wheel, about half of drivers 16 to 24 say they have texted while driving, compared with 22 percent of drivers 35 to 44.

Texting while driving received greater attention in the late 2000s, corresponding to a rise in the number of text messages being sent. Over a year approximately 2,000 teens die from texting while driving.

Texting was blamed in the 2008 Chatsworth train collision which killed 25 passengers. Investigations revealed that the engineer of that train had sent 45 text messages while operating.

Text messaging has the greatest relative risk, with drivers of heavy vehicles or trucks being more than 23 times more likely to experience a safety-critical event when texting.

A driver texting for 6 seconds is looking at the phone for 4.6 seconds of that time and travels the distance of a football field without their eyes on the road.

Addressing the Problem by:
The use of telematics to detect drunk driving and texting while driving has been proposed.
The insurance product would not ban texting while driving, but would charge drivers who text and drive a higher premium.
Addressing the issue of distracted driving throughout the entire process of composing, sending and receiving text messages, removing the visual and physical distractions normally associated with text messaging.
In addition to technological solutions to address the issue of texting while driving, drivers may consciously read and sign a pledge to never text while driving. After drivers read and sign the pledge, they remember their pledge each time they have an urge to text while driving.

While there is not a fix all solution to this problem, each and every small initiative helps.

Very Important: Check this out and you will never do it again:
http://gizmodo.com/5338475/texting-while-driving-psa-delivers-bloody-bone+crunching-message

Remember:
Just 5 seconds of texting while driving can kill or maim others...

By Dominic Meinrad

Texting While Driving Article 4
While mobile phones have given a great ease to communicate between people and have become an integral part of each one’s life they do bring certain risks for their users. One such fast growing risk is: "texting while driving".

Texting while driving is the act of composing, sending, or reading his text messages, email, or making other similar use of one's the internet on a mobile device, while operating a motor vehicle such as an automobile, truck or train.

Every person will agree that texting while driving definitely does not help us drive any better.

Surveys in 2010 in the United States reveal the danger of this dangerous habit that it is soon going to overtake "drunken driving" habit. More than 28% drivers (mostly less than 30 years of age) admit they do some texting while driving.

Research shows that in a simulated environment, risks which can lead to very dangerous consequences even losing life for the driver:
1. A texting driver attention on the road is reduced by 400% when compared to non-texting driver.
2. Missed lane changes increased on 140% for a texting driver.
3. Risk of crashing while text messaging and driving is more than double that of talking on a cell phone.
4. Participants in the driving & text messaging condition responded more slowly to the flash of brake lights and showed less forward and lateral control compared with a driving-only condition.
5. Text-messaging drivers were also involved in more crashes (as many as 23 times risk is increases) than non-text messaging drivers.

In 2009, President Obama signed an Executive Order directing federal employees not to engage in text messaging while driving government-owned vehicles; when using electronic equipment supplied by the government while driving; or while driving privately owned vehicles when they’re on official government business. The order also encourages federal contractors and others doing business with the government to adopt and enforce their own policies banning texting while driving on the job.
However each country needs to pass a strict and ensure that law is enforced thus helping citizens’ safety.

Here are some of the tips for the teens and parents:

Tips for Teens
1. Use technology. Use application on the cell phones that handle responses to texting.
2. Don't be tempted: turn off your cell phone. Let voicemail capture your voice and text messages.
3. If you have to call or text while driving, pull off the road safely and stop.
4. Recognize that text messaging can be a habit. Get support from your friends by letting them know you are working on breaking the texting habit.
5. If you think you will still be tempted to text and drive, put your phone somewhere you can't reach it, like the trunk.
6. Take control of your cell phone, don't let it control you. You are the only one who decides when and if you send and read a text message.

Tips for Parents
1. Don't call/text your teen at times when you know they are likely to be driving.
2. Review your teen's cell phone bill with them to see if they are texting at times they are likely to be driving.
3. Share this information with your teen. Bring awareness of the danger that this habit can cause for them and others.
4. Know the law. It is illegal in many countries that with an instruction permit to use a cell phone while driving.
5. Establish family rules that prohibit texting while driving.
6. Set a good example, don't text and drive.

By Kalyana

Texting While Driving Article 5
Texting while driving is the act of composing, sending, or reading his text messages, email, or making other similar use of one's internet on a mobile device, while operating a motor vehicle such as an automobile, truck or train.

The practice of texting while driving has been viewed by many people and authorities as dangerous.

It has also been ruled as the cause of some motor vehicle accidents, and in some places has been outlawed or restricted.

Texting while driving leads to increased distraction behind the wheel.

In 2006, Liberty Mutual Insurance Group conducted a survey of more than 900 teens from more than 26 high schools nationwide.

The results showed that 37% of students found texting to be "very" or "extremely" distracting.

A study by the American Automobile Association discovered that 46% of teens admitted to being distracted behind the wheel because of texting.

An estimated 16,000 people in the US have died in accidents caused by drivers sending text messages while driving between 2001 and 2007, according to federal data.

Deaths due to “distracted driving” rose 28 percent in three years to 5,870 in 2008 from 4,572 in 2005, an analysis of federal data on road fatalities says.

Distracted driving has reached epidemic proportion.

It is a disease that we can control.

We need to strengthen laws and beef up enforcement.

We need to encourage better driving practices, in all contexts, by all age groups, "

Some law enforcement officers are concerned about the difficulty of enforcing a texting-while-driving ban if such a measure becomes state law.

The Ohio House has approved a bill that would make it a misdemeanor to write, read or send text messages while driving, sending the measure to the Senate.

Many officers say such behavior can be distracting for drivers and threaten others' safety but that cracking down on it could prove to be complicated and time-consuming, the Lima News reported this weekend.

"Just because we cite someone for it, we still have to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt in court,"

It is said it could be tough to show a driver was texting at the exact moment an officer spotted the violation, and collecting the required evidence would take more time.

By Vaibhav Pawar

Texting While Driving Article 6
TEXTING WHILE DRIVING: Texting commonly known as SMS (for short message service) has increased globally from 9.8 billion messages a month in December ’05 to 110.4 billion in December ’08. This phenomenal increase has no doubt enhanced the ability to communicate instantaneously, to expand one’s networking, to keep up social communication, to report news, and even to seek help when in trouble. However, the problem is that many of these texts are sent while driving. Large numbers of surveys in different parts of the world confirm that many of these texts are sent by people while driving vehicles. These surveys indicate that almost half the drivers between the ages of 17 and 35 text while they drive, and about one-third between 35 and 55.

RISKS OF TEXTING WHILE DRIVING: Alertness while driving is important and texting can be a risky distraction. Texting while driving has been found to pose higher risks than driving under the influence of alcohol above the legally accepted limits. A 2009 experiment conducted by Cars and Drivers demonstrated that a person could better handle the car when he or she had levels of alcohol higher than allowed by law, than when he or she was texting. The risks are high in countries where people drive at high speed on highways and a moment of distraction can have significant costs. In the US, in 2008, driver distraction “was the cause of 16 percent of all fatal crashes -- 5,800 people killed -- and 21 percent of crashes resulting in an injury -- 515,000 people wounded” (The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration). Although we do not have similar statistics for India, driving conditions in India also require an attentive and focused operation, because drivers are unpredictable (since they do not always abide by road rules and signs), because there are large numbers of pedestrians on the street for lack of pavements, and law enforcement is weaker.

WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT? There is no one way that such behavior can be controlled or curbed. There is need for multiple and simultaneous actions and some that target teens and children in particular, 50 percent of whom reportedly text while driving. Some steps to deter such behavior include:

• Ensuring laws and regulations that forbid texting while driving, and fine people.

• Raising public awareness of the dangers of texting while driving (in India it would be good to have a small segment on the dangers before showing movies in theaters.

• Utilizing different media to communicate to school and college students about the significant risks of texting and driving in schools as well as including this as a subject for their counseling sessions.

• Parents setting parameters on the use of cell phones before giving teenagers phones or before helping them to obtain driver’s licenses; as well as leading by example.

• Improved technology such as the one utilized by TMobile, a global phone company (it has introduced an Application, whereby the phone can detect whether the owner is driving and send automated messages back saying that the owner is driving) or even more advanced technology such as ones that will read your text messages and record and send voice messages.

By Gita Gopal

Texting While Driving Article 7
Make your car a No Phone Zone!
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The joy of sitting behind a wheel is amazing, but unsafe driving can be detremintal.

Texting is a preffered medium of communication and it needs attention and focus, so does driving.

One of the fastest growing and most problematic of driver distractions is text messaging.

Most of us mistakenly think we can juggle those big hunks of steel we drive every day with devices like cell phones without paying the price, unfortunately its not true.

Statistics show that texting is more dangerous than talking on the phone and even drunk driving.

Texting while driving increases the risk of accident 23.2 times over unimpaired driving.

Texting is the most distracting of all the cellphone related activities, necessitating the longest time to send or receive a text.

9 out of 10 adults believe texting while driving is "distracting, dangerous and should be outlawed."

According to a study: “Texting drivers look down at their devices for five seconds at a time on average — enough time at highway speeds to cover more than a football field”

Example: In the year 2008, Chatsworth train collision, which killed 25 passengers. Upon closer investigation, it became known that the engineer of that train had sent 45 text messages while operating.

How do you put an End to Driving Texting Accidents Today?
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The fact is Driving needs to be taken more seriously-

Complete any call or text before starting the car

If someone gets a text while driving, they can easily pull over and check their phone. Focus needs to be on the road at all times while driving.

If you are driving and You don't respond to a message you don't ignore the person but certainly you avoid an accident.

If possible, have a friend send your texts for you if there are multiple people in your car.

Know directions before turning the ignition key rather than relying on a phone call or GPS to show the way.

Alarmingly, around 60 percent of youngsters admitted that they text while driving, considering it multi-tasking. Multi-tasking is a skill but not while driving , you not only endanger your life but you do risk the lives of other innocent people.

While driving, put your phone on " silent mode" or use the services of voice mail, SIMPLE- you dont hear the ring, you are not tempted to answer or look at it.

Texting distracts you, you need to remember thats it not only your eyes off the road but your mind too- Avoid distractions!

If you see your son or daughter is addicted to texting on phone - Restrict the timing and use of your teens phone. Text Blocker – allows you to set up restrictive zones that block texting communications.

As a parent, you need to come up with solutions to discourage your teen from texting while driving.

Usage of the mobile phone application, Textecution, prevents users from texting when they are travelling in a vehicle that is moving faster than 10 mph. Textecution is a program that runs on Android phones and uses the onboard GPS to know how fast the phone is moving. If it detects the phone traveling at speeds that indicate it is in a car, Textecution disables the texting functions of the phone.

Special programmes, education campaigns and presentations on " Dangers of texting while driving'' to be conducted in High schools/ Colleges and Universities.

Next time you text while driving please remember that in a split second you can deal with consequences which are absolutely devestating!

By Sapna C