Should drivers be able to use their cell phone?

With the popularity of mobile devices rising year after year many cellphone users attempt to use their devices while driving. As a result of this there are 1.6 million cell phone use related car accidents each year. Making a call, sending a text, or skipping a song is never worth putting someones life in danger. It is simply too dangerous for a multitude of reasons and never should be done. If drivers were able to do this the roads would never be safe.

Cell Phones are extremely distracting whether your doing your homework, watching tv, and especially while operating a motor vehicle. Answering a text takes away your attention for about five seconds. Traveling at 55 mph, that's enough time to travel the length of a football field. Hundreds of thousands of injuries occur each year as a result of distracted driving. To stop this problem we have to do more than just bring awareness to the issue, we have to steps legally to protect teen drivers as well as adults.

Teens are most at risk for distracted driving related accidents. 21 percent of teen drivers involved in fatal accidents were distracted by their cell phones. Also with only one other person in the car teen drivers are twice as likely to get into a fatal car crash. This is due to the fact that teens use cell phones more than adults and are also more easily distracted. Most drivers are aware of the fact that texting and driving is very dangerous but continue to do so anyway. The desire to want to stay connected at all times is too great for us citizens to restrict ourselves. So we have to put laws in place to restrict cell phone usage while driving. Some states already have laws prohibiting holding your cell phone in your hand while you drive. We need these laws every where or we will continue to lose loved ones to car accidents that could have been avoided if the drivers weren't using their cell phones.