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Should cell phone use be banned while driving?

Results so far:

Yes
69% 3253 votes Total: 4702 votes
No
31% 1449 votes

Cell phone users are a proven danger on our highways. A recent study found that 80% of accidents and 65% of near-accidents involved some form of inattention, and that the most common form of inattention was cell phone use.

Studies have shown that while dialing was found to be the most common cause of crashes (one has to take his eyes off the road to dial) the simple act of talking on a cell phone, even on a headset, was a proven distraction and caused accidents. Cell phone users are four times more likely than non-cell phone users to be involved in an accident. In these studies, the conversation itself was as distracting as dialing or calling up messages.

Personally, I have experienced this on a regular basis. If I'm being cut off in traffic, or if I narrowly avoid a wreck, I can be absolutely sure that the person responsible is talking on a cell phone. I regularly check, just after an incident, to see if the person is on a cell phone, and sure enough, in almost every case, they are. It infuriates me, someone who can't even afford a cell phone, that a cell phone user could endanger my safety, the safety of my children, of my vehicle, and my financial well being, to have a conversation which can wait until later, which they have absolutely no right to have while in transit.

Some states, such as New York and Connecticut have banned cell phone use while driving, and several other states have legislation in the works. While many people call this "totalitarian", I do not. My safety and the safety of other drivers, especially child passengers, are far more important than a phone call. One fact is certain; there is no phone call that can't wait until you can pull over from the highway. If the phone call is that crucial, you can find a stopping place, and take the call, then continue on your way. None of us is in so big a hurry that it's worth endangering other people's lives.

230066_m Learn more about this author, Jennifer Claerr.
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Below are the top articles rated and ranked by Helium members on:

Should cell phone use be banned while driving?

Yes
  • 1 of 270

    by Mark Waybill

    Should cell phones be allowed to be used whilst driving? I would say no. The practice is no better than drink driving, as

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  • 2 of 270

    by Paul Kerstein

    According to the Insurance Information Institute, more than 236 million people subscribed to cell phone service as of May,

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No
  • 1 of 112

    by Scott Wolfe

    I love my cell phone and most people do. Cell phones make it easy to contact our friends and loved ones in case of an emergency.

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  • 2 of 112

    by Allan M. Heller

    Driving nowadays is more hazardous than ever. As population increases, so does vehicular traffic, and motorists are as aggressive

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