by Wayne Ramsey

Created on: March 25, 2007   Last Updated: October 17, 2010

Cell phones have becoming an increasingly more necessary part of world and specifically American culture.  It is almost unheard of for someone to not have a cell phone on them at any given period of time.  In fact cell phones are so popular that rather than asking for a cell phone number most people just ask someone to call them with their cell phone so they can trap their number.  As the perceived necessity to have our cell phones close increases so does the potential for greater risk taking due to cell phone usage, this is especially true when driving. 

The reality is that people need to know whether they are a good cell phone driver or not. The best way to find this out is to talk to your friends. If they say that you are horrible at driving while talking on your cell phone then you probably are. There are just far too many people that are more into their conversation than into the actual act of driving. This means that as they respond on their cell phones, they jerk their vehicle at the same time. These people probably aren't much better without their cell phones, but with the cell phones, it makes them incredibly hazardous to drive around.

Drivers also need to know when it is a bad time to talk on the cell phone. In the middle of traffic, when it is stop and go, drivers need to be extremely alert in order to avoid accidents. When they are talking on a cell phone, they have a much slower reaction time. Far too often this results in accidents, which create a much bigger issue during times of high traffic. In these situations drivers should just refrain from using their cell phones. During bad weather, it is also best to just leave the cell phone off. The need for increased reaction time increases drastically when it is raining or snowing, and having your attention on your conversation, will creates more accidents than anything.

An even more evil threat is the use of text messaging and applications while driving.  As smart phones become the norm for cell phone owners, so does the usage of smart phone applications while driving.  These applications often times are tied to a specific GPS location and users are able to use these programs to tell their friends and family where they currently area.  Programs that have functionality only encourage cell phone obsessed drivers to push the limits and use their phones while driving. 

Text messaging has become even more dangerous to the public than even most chemically impaired

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