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Texting while driving becoming new DWI

Posted on Feb 01, 2010 in Opinion

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On the way home from school one evening last week, I found myself behind a dangerous car. The car was swerving all over the road, veering onto the shoulder, and threatening to take over both lanes of I-59 northbound.

Assuming the driver of the car was under the influence of alcohol or otherwise impaired, I passed it. Like any other person, I glanced at the driver, trying to detect any evidence of the assumed impairment, only to see the glow of a cell phone illuminating the hazardous driver’s face.This person was texting while driving.

This alarmingly popular trend is now illegal in many places. In fact, the Alabama House just voted to ban texting while behind the wheel, making Alabama the 20th state in the union to do so.

How has this practice of typing shorthand messages on cell phones while maneuvering a large, metal, quick-moving object through traffic become such a popular pastime?

It must be connected to the fact that texting itself is so popular. Sure, texting is convenient. It’s the ideal mode of communication while in a quiet place with no computer. But is it really the best way to talk to someone if you’re just walking around sitting at home? The phone is certainly better for those situations.

As for driving, the only form of in-car communication anywhere near safe is simply talking to someone who is in the same vehicle. Talking on cell phones while driving, especially without a hands-free device, has been proven several times over to be dangerous.

Texting while driving is much more dangerous than talking on the phone while driving. Why? It’s difficult enough to dial a pre-programmed phone number while driving. Texting requires a person to look at the phone for an extended period of time, thereby preventing said person from looking at the road. When that happens, an accident is immensely more likely.

Why do people insist on texting while driving? If they really had something so important to tell someone that they felt the need to ignore the road altogether just to type the message, wouldn’t it be easier to call the person?

The best solution would be to wait until reaching a destination or, if in a safe area, to pull over before contacting anyone. Why risk your own life and the lives of everyone driving around you just to type a text message?

While DWIs will never cease to exist, look out for reports of DWTs — driving while texting — to be as common in the near future.
 

Email: hwebber@uab.edu




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