Cell Phone Use Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cell Phone Use - Essay Example During the early periods, cell phones were considered as a luxury and only the business class was able to tolerate its expenses. Today, almost every individual coming from different classes use cellular phones during their everyday life. These devices are utilized by individuals in various aspects of their everyday life; these devices are even commonly used while people are moving from one place to another. A huge population of drivers have reported using cell phones while they are driving. Increase in number of people using phones while travelling have resulted in several road accidents and have not only led to damage to assets but have even resulted in several deaths. These incidents have made policy makers stand against the use of cellular phones while driving and these concerns have been addressed through restrictions through rules and regulations. Jurisdictions that have not yet levied such bans are even debating over banning the use of cell phones while driving. This paper will argue on why the use of cell phone should be banned or restricted during driving and what measures are already in place to control this act. Body There have been various changes in trends on who uses cell phone devices and for what purposes, they are using these devices. According to Cain and Burris, the number of people using these devices for family business elevated from 40% to 61% during the era of 1990 and 1998 (Cain, 1999). The NHTSA reports that the 15% of individuals who have not graduated from high school, 26% of individuals who have graduated from high school 30% of those who have not yet completed collage and 40% of those who are collage pass outs are cell phone users (NHTSA, 1997). A common application of the use of this device is during driving a vehicle. The NHTSA and Cain and Burris reported that around 90% of the owners of mobile phone use the device during driving. The PCIA have reported that those who use mobile phones for over 1 hour per month account for 15% of the owners of this device, those who use it less than one hour but more than half an hour account for 15% of owners, those who use it between ten to thirty minutes account for 20% o the owners and those who use it more than one minute but less than 10 minutes account for 39% of the owners (PCIA, 1999). An accident can result not only in loss of property; it even results in loss of life. When an accident takes place, the people involved directly in the accident can experience hurt at the level of getting minor injuries to the extent of losing their lives. Accidents can lead to heavy damages to very expensive vehicles, along with the incident of damaging public assets. Other expenses or negative impacts of an accident include; loss of working hours, insurance cost, legal costs and huge health care bills. In case of an accident taking place in urban regions, huge traffic jams take place due to which the emergency service providers may not be able to respond in a timely manner and people end up losing their lives. The negative effects of a collision caused due to usage of hand held phones during driving have increased the concerns of policy makers, organizations and insurance companies and various other stake holders. When drivers use cell phones during the act of driving, they are indulged in various activities related to the use of cell phone while driving. Drivers engage in actions such as finding the device, dialling the number, sending and receiving messages and ending the call. These activities do not only distract drivers physically but even emotionally. Drivers are emotionally distracted if they are being a part of an emotional conversation. Odgers stated that drivers are highly distracted during the