Why Banning the Use of Cell Phones While Driving Should Be Mandatory Nationwide
Usually, the cause of a traffic accident is the disabling attention of drivers while driving a car. So, the distracted driver has the high risk to get into an accident. Therefore, many countries develop and implement special laws to reduce the number of road accidents. These legislative regulations establish some restrictions while driving, for example, a ban on talking on a cell phone. This study investigates the expected efficiency of this measure, compare it to the practical statistical information and analyze the necessity of this ban nationwide.
According to National Transportation Safety Board, there is a growing threat of car accidents because of distracted drivers (Ahlers, 2011). McCart et al. (2014) argue that the strict legislative measures and strong
enforcement can transform the driver’s behavior. However, the results of American studies have shown that banning the use of phones during traffic does not lead to a reduction in traffic accidents. According to Trempel et
al. (2011), the accident statistics for the six months before and the half year after the ban in California demonstrates the only statistically insignificant decrease in traffic accidents. However, it is important to
understand, that these calculations are not exact. The main reason for this conclusion it the complexity of investigative activity to find out the real cause of traffic accident. Considering analyzed information, we can
conclude that cell phones do not cause the traffic accident directly, but the distracted attention of drivers is the primary reason. So, the state should accept all legal measures to prevent the “distracted driver” behavior.
Consequently, it is evident that distracting drivers present dangers for the participants of road traffic. A cell phone is one of the devices, which requires concentration. So, talking on a cell phone or even texting creates the situation of the potential car accident. Thus, banning the use of cell phones should be implemented nationwide. However, this legislative measure can not solve the issue of “distracted driver” without the educational campaigns and strict enforcement. Only the appropriate combination of these regulations will change driver’s behavior and protect them from accidents.
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