Texting and Driving in Arizona
Three-quarters of the driver have seen other drivers texting or talking on cellphone according to the survey reported in Nationwide 2009. Four out of five cellphone owner admit they are using the cell phone while driving. People can’t concentrate on two things simultaneously because our brain has a cognitive load, which means one mental activity can be engaged at a time. So, it means if there’s a driver who is using a cellphone while driving he is less focused on driving then he should be without texting or talking.
If you are experienced driver the cognitive load will increase in term of your focus on driving while you are on the road.
Texting while driving is new drunk driving. These are the statistic during 2015. By U.S Department of Transportation statistics. Numbers are around 3.500 fatalities and about 400.000 injuries. Teens are most common drivers in these incidents, four-time more likely than adults. From 2011 to 2015 the National Traffic Highway Safety Administration reported around 50.000 to 70.000 crashes.
Safety campaigns have produced little results cause numbers are still rising. Around 88% drivers use their phone on all trips in the U.S. Most of drivers ignore the warnings cause they think using a phone while driving is not that dangerous.
Hands-free devices are not the necessarily better solution then handheld phone. Volume for hands-free devices has been the no.1 problem cause many times drivers spend more time fiddling with the earpieces or headphones then the actual cellphone. Bluetooth or similar products in which cell phone calls are transmitted through the car’s built-in microphone may be the safest solution.
In Arizona Senate Bill 1261 would impose a fine of between $25 and $99 for a first offense and between $100 and $200 for a subsequent offense. Some lawmakers have tried to ban texting and driving, and they have failed every time.
This year The Senate Committee on Transportation and Technology unanimously approved the proposal and proposal has now moved to the Rules of Committee before going to the full Senate.
If texting while driving causes death or an injury the defendant will pay up to $4000 and be charged with a class 2 misdemeanor. Many states outlawed hand-held phone use while driving or have banned cell phone use for a specific type of drivers (except. police, fire department, medical, etc.) In California, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Connecticut, Maryland, and Washington (Washington D.C. and the Virgin Islands) police officers can pull you over for using a hand-held cell phone.
Diving studies find that our notion of traffic gets worse is far from guaranteed, and sometimes we unconsciously pick up the phone when we have some news or just application update. Our brain needs around 30 seconds to reorient and resume our attention to driving after we touch our cellphone, radio or something else. We now have scientifical proof that our brain needs some time after multitasking to resume to one thing. So it’s somewhat safe to park your vehicle and then text or send email
