One of the biggest problems today with cell phones is drivers getting distracted when behind the wheel. The article,"Cell Phone Use Distracts Drivers," describes that at any given moment, more than 1 million U.S. drivers are talking on handheld cell phones, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (3). This is a substantial number considering that there has been studies done that show a person is several times more likely to be in a car accident if they are texting or talking and driving. In the article “Cell Phone Use Distracts Drivers it explains that percentages of accidents can be increased up to four times when the driver is using his or her phone (7). This shows that there is a direct correlation between the increasing number of phones and the number of car accidents that have occurred. Christopher Hart writes in his article that, “National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data for 2010 indicate that 3,092 deaths, about one in 10, occurred in a distraction-affected crash” (Hart 6). For instance, these distractions could be anything from sending a friend a text or calling mom on the way home from the city. These distractions all have the same thing in common though; they increase the risk for traffic accidents. People may say that this issue is solved by having cars incorporate hands free use, but that is not necessarily the case. Accidents are still likely to occur even when the user is using the hands free capabilities. Seeing as nobody plans to give up their phones anytime soon, there should be stricter laws on using phones when driving. With only the price of a traffic ticket, users are more than willing to take the risk and send a text to their friend or call their relative. Therefore, with stricter laws these number of distraction related accidents can go way down.
Some people claim that the practicality of having a cell phone while driving outweighs the increased risk of an accident. They may state that having their phone on them in the case of an accident may be beneficial because of the ability to call for help quickly. The fact is many of these accidents may not occur if the people did not have their cell phones with them. Like previously stated, some may argue that they can talk and text without ever having to pick up their phone. Most new cars today have the up to date technology and allow hands free texting and calling. People believe that since they can keep their eyes on the road while using hands free that nothing bad could come of it. A number of studies have recently suggested that this is not the case: “Apparently, the act of conversing on the phone—not holding the phone to your ear—is the more dangerous distraction. Emotional conversations in particular seem to elevate risk. So hands-free or not, there's an increased risk” ("Cell Phone Use Distracts Drivers" 15). This shows that drivers can be distracted by their cell phone whether they are holding it in their hand or not. It also helps to tell that overall, phones are very big distractions when driving.