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Poll: How often do you text and drive?
Tue Jan 8, 2013 11:30 AM EST
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I'd love to say never. I really do my best not to and will often pull off to the side of the road. But I'm not perfect. Though more often it's not actually texting, it's dialing or pulling up a song or podcast.
I'd love to say never. I really do my best not to and will often pull off to the side of the road. But I'm not perfect. Though more often it's not actually texting, it's dialing or pulling up a song or podcast.
So, Katy............are you saying then that you are so special that you can choose to ignore a law that was put in place because its violation has resulted in the deaths and injuries of thousands of people?
I'm sure you think that you're being careful enough when YOU do it so that there won't be an accident that injures, maims or kills another person. Don't you think those other selfish, uncaring slimeballs thought the same thing before they killed someone?
No it is like everything else speeding or going through yellow light people do it and have accidents...
you speciallllllllllllllll for saying that beangirinder
It's no different than driving while reading a book. Would you do that?
i've seen many people booming down the highway with a book propped on the steering wheel, and honestly, I have never understood how one can safely drive down the road reading a book, and if driving bores them so badly, maybe they should hire a driver....
I rarely text and drive. The few times I have I either 1) wait until I am stopped at a red light, or 2) use my bluetooth car speaker (translates what I say into a text). This way my eyes are not off the road while driving. That's way too dangerous.
I would never even try that, I wish they would outlaw talking on the phone while driving also, in every state.
then outlaw talking to passengers and changing the radio station while driving too
Oh, please - you cannot compare talking to a passenger and changing your radio station to texting. You can keep your eyes on the road as you have the conversation; same for changing your radio station if you know your vehicle well enough. Texting requires that you repeatedly take your eyes off of the road AND takes your attention away from what is going on around you.
Nice try, but, I've never seen a driver veer into the lane next to them or slow down slower than the flow of traffic because they were holding a conversation or changing their radio station.
Only complete MORONS think it is safe to text and drive at the same time.
Marine,
Not even a close comparison in terms of the distraction level in regards to talking to a passenger. 1) You don't have to look at a passenger while talking to them and 2) they can act as a second set of eyes. If I was king, I would make cell phones inoperable while the car is in motion.
Marine36, there have been studies that show while texting and driving you are more likely to get into an accident. You're an idiot if you think it's ok to text and drive and like many others, you won't believe the dangers until it is too late and you have either hurt or killed someone.
It is against the law where I live for a teen to be driving a vehicle with more than one other teen in the car, unless there is an adult. This cuts down on the cars full of teens driving themselves off of cliffs, or into rivers, or into oncoming traffic, due to the distractions.
I think we live in a culture where business people need to 'hit the ball over the net'. Teens consider it rude not to reply immediately to texts. Home schedules would grind to a halt without immediate communication. We are conditioned to pursue this level of efficiency but we are all supposed cease this behavior once we sit in our respective 5,000 pound pieces of steel and glass. I read that more than 3/4 of teens text daily - many text more 4000 times a month. New college students no longer have email addresses! They use texting and Facebook - even with their professors. Tweens (ages 9 -12) send texts to each other from their bikes.
I decided to do something about distracted driving after my three year old daughter was nearly run down right in front of me by a texting driver. Instead of a shackle that locks down phones and alienates the user, I built a texting asset called OTTER that is a simple and intuitive GPS based, texting auto reply app for smartphones. While driving, OTTER silences those distracting call ringtones and chimes unless a bluetooth is enabled. The texting auto reply allows anyone to schedule a ‘texting blackout period’ in any situation like a meeting or a lecture without feeling disconnected. This software is a social messaging tool for the end user that also empowers this same individual to be a sustainably safer driver.
Erik Wood, owner
OTTER app
do one thing well... be great.
I've seen people texting while driving 75 or 80 on the freeway. They can't even maintain their lane position. This drives me nuts! I wonder what sort of people think that they can get behind the wheel of a lethal weapon and engage in an activity that prevents them from staying in their lane? They deserve extra-special prison sentences when they are caught, in my opinion.
I guess it's unfair to all the rest of these people to answer this question at all, because I've never driven, don't own a car, so forgive me. However, as a pedestrian, I've noticed far too many people texting, brushing their hair, eating or drinking while driving, and in a state that supposedly outlawed such things. My friend who is now a retired traffic collision specialist for my local police department said he'd seen far too many accidents from all of the things I described while he was wearing the badge, and now, even more.
I was watching the broadcast tonight and by the end of the texting and driving portion I began to wonder about the victim that mentioned that he is now left with a giant medical bill and already burned through his savings trying to pay for it. In the report, the type of punishment that was discussed was prison time and both sides, driver and victim, were weighed for why or why not the punishment should be more severe. But is it possible to consider having the driver to pay a fine as a punishment? I do believe that it is unfair that the people responsible for the wreck are seemingly not taking any of the responsibility by paying for damage done or medical bills. Jail time is something so commonly given out and it really has nothing to do with the crime. For it to be a fair and anything close to a satisfying punishment they should take responsibility by taking direct action to help reduce the finacial burden that they directly caused. Personally I do not know how to go about turning this idea into an action, so please, any comments on my opinion are welcome.
In California, victim restitution is commonly a component of a criminal conviction.
One significant issue is that the so-called hands free applications are not. It is impossible to make a call without touching the dial. If I want to call, I have to manually start the app, then I tell the phone to dial, then it asks me if that is correct, and I have to touch the phone again. If there were an app that allowed be to initiate calls, and hang-up without looking at the phone or touching it, that would be a lot safer. There is no excuse for this fact. They could do it tomorrow. Also, they could set up texting to be done by voice, with a phone that reads the text over your blue tooth and you speak a reply, or to initiate a text you say "text John" or whomever. Then you speak the text and when done say "end". Once again, they could do this tomorrow. This could be a class-action products liability action. talking and listening is not the problem. Looking at the phone, and touching it is the problem. There is no reason that has to be the case. Eliminate looking at the phone, and touching it while driving. I have a Blue tooth speaker phone for my car, but I have to look at the phone and touch it to initiate a call.
I am a kid and i agree with all this