Cell Phones and Cars- Part 1: A Not-So-Good Pair

Just about everyone in this modern day and age has a cell phone. Similarly, just about everyone with a license has access to a car, whether it is their own or their family's. Naturally, these two popular, globally-used technologies should be utilized simultaneously, right? Here's the part where I say "wrong." Cell phones are the bane of a cars existence. According to the Governor's Highway Safety Association, California, New Jersey, Connecticut, Oregon, New York, Washington, and Washington D.C. have banned all handheld cell phone use, over 15 states have banned texting, and 21 states have banned novice cell phone use. Why is that? Well, if you drive, you should know the answer. A car requires the constant utilization of every part of one's consciousness; drivers must stay alert at all times and constantly check several different aspects of their surroundings. That includes the cars, the people on the sidewalks, the lights, the turns, the speed, the roads and their conditions, and, often times, the passengers in the car; you've heard it all before. Using a cell phone, especially in your hand, is extremely distracting and can easily interfere with a driver's concentration. For most experienced drivers, driving is like riding a bike; observing the car's surroundings is basically second nature. You no longer have to think twice about going through that 3-second yellow light or avoiding that pothole in the road; driving just becomes a breeze. But cell phones don't make the driving so easy.

As a driver, I know how it feels to navigate my vehicle in just about any environment, whether its my suburban neighborhood or the traffic-filled highway. When I drive, I feel very attached to my vehicle, like its a part of me. I press the gas, it goes; I ease the brakes, it slows. I am in complete control at all times. But, back in reality, I am not literally attached to the vehicle I drive, nor is any other driver attached to their own car. The only thing keeping you in that seat is gravity, and when you brake from 70 mph to 35 mph in 2 seconds to get on that ramp you didn't prepare for, the only thing keeping you in the car and not on the the pavement in a pool of blood is your seat belt. Although drivers lose sight of it, the reality of driving is that you are driving an extremely-sensitive, fast moving, 2 ton chunk of machine. This piece of machinery does not know who you are, it doesn't like you, it doesn't care for your traveling music, and it certainly has no problem with crashing into a tree, or, better yet, other cars. The truth is, the driver is the carpenter, the car is the hammer, and the road is the nail. No matter how experienced you are, if you get distracted, you're gonna wind up with a really swollen thumb. Unfortunately, this metaphor does not quite hold true, because, when a driver takes a phone call or decides to reply to a text, their loss of concentration will lead to much more than a sore thumb.

Now, phones are definitely not the only cause of diversion. There are hundreds of things that cause careful drivers to lose focus for that dire second. But, cell phones are major league players when compared to most of the other distractions. Cell phones, although very helpful in everyday life, do not outweigh the price of being distracted while driving. Making a call uses a very large part of the brain, as many different areas must be used at once. And of course some of those parts will overlap with the parts needed for driving. Texting is even worse because a standard texter needs to look at the screen or buttons while typing, which distracts a driver's sight, the most important sense required for driving. I have used my cell phone in the car 3 times, and they were to read texts that I received on separate occasions. Yes, that's hypocritical, but I know not to do it anymore. Besides that, I've never actually used my phone for calling or texting while driving. Some people, on the other hand, can't get it into their heads that using a handheld cell phone while driving is bad. It may seem like they're in complete control, but those who continue to use their handheld cell phones while driving will eventually end up with that sore thumb. It only needs to happen once.