September 30th of 2010, Massachusetts became the 30th state to ban texting while operating a motor vehicle. Texting while driving is as unsafe as drinking and driving. However, unlike texting, it is easily proven if a driver is under the influence of alcohol. It is fortunate that in this century we have the technology to determine how much alcohol an individual has in their system. Although it is hard to prove is someone was texting or not because the only way we would come to find out is the aftermath their car accident. Despite how hard it may be for us to determine whether a driver was texting or talking on their cell, we still need to consider our safety in this. It is amazing how many of us cannot leave our cell phones; we see this everywhere, in school, on the bus and train, waiting in line or even at the registers. It is as if our mobile phones have this great attachment to us. Try waiting outside until a college classroom gets out and observe what the first behavior of each student is. Once the students are outside the class, they all reach for their cell phones and see what’s going on.  If you have attached to your cell phone and just happen to get behind the wheel, the best suggestion is to throw your phone into the back seat. The combination of texting and driving are very dangerous. Aside from placing our seat belts on, we should always be cautious of our safety as well as others around us. We may think that we are able to text and drive at the same time, but when your car hits another car, just because ou made it out safe does not make it just for you to continue texting. You may have the skill, but it is not a skill to text and drive while putting other drivers at risk.

This is not to say that whoever is driving and texting will increase their chances of ending up in a car accident, but the probability is high. This is a matter of taking responsibility for the drivers own sake and for the safety of society, because after all the driver is driving within our community. If we must talk on the phone, use a hands-free headset although sometimes  headsets do not help much because it’s the conversation that takes away the center of the driver, therefore this leads them to pay more attention to what’s going on the phone that to the actual road while driving. But let’s face the fact which is, it does not matter how good a driver is because texting and driving endangers everyone. Therefore, it was a great idea that was banned, because answering cell phones is one of the most common distractions while driving there is no question about that! Driving is an activity that requires full awareness and composing, reading, and sending text messages will compromise the driver’s awareness.

Even though it is now a law in Massachusetts, it is disappointing to see some people still take the risk to place themselves and others in danger. If our adults are texting, talking on the phone while operating a motor vehicle, then what type of message are we sending to our youth? That it is okay for you to multitask while diving as long as you know what you are doing? Certainly that is not the type of message we want to send. Parents always play a role in their children’s lives. Therefore, it is their responsibility to take away the driver’s car keys right away if they are practicing unsafe driving. According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 16% of all fatal crashes in 2008 were caused by driver distraction. Texting takes away the use of one hand and requires you to occasionally glance at your cell phone, which can lead to catastrophic consequences. One of the most understandable things that could happen when a driver is texting while driving is that a driver would avert his eyes from the road for around 3-4 seconds. This is more than sufficient time for a person to run in front of the vehicle or for the vehicle in front of you to make an abrupt stop or to miss seeing the light change. Another thing that happens when a driver is texting is that their mind would be on the message they are reading or composing. This, of course, prevents the driver from thinking rapidly and compromises his reflexes.  Odds are, they will not be able to react quickly to a situation on the road because they are thinking of something else.

Nevertheless, the best solution to avoid car accidents would be to place your phone in the back seat as if you have no phone unless of course if you are on the side of the road when the car is not operating. This way your full concentration will just focus on the road and you will not be tempted to check and read any messages that come in. It’s always safer to wait until you reach your destination and than check your messages. Just like when college students check their phone right after class has ended so they would not miss the lecture!