Distracted Driving Essay

Distracted driving contributes to millions of vehicle accidents every year in the United States, resulting in millions of cases of property damage, bodily injury, and the tragic loss of life. A major reason distracted driving is so common is due to the era of information that we live in. At any given time, the average driver on our roads has access to unlimited amounts of information at the tip of our fingers through our phones, computers, and other electronics that constantly surround us. This access continues while driving since technologies have been advanced so that even our cars are able to feed us a constant stream of information. Unfortunately, the human brain is terribly ineffective at multitasking, so when we try to do something else

Even though modern technology is a large contributing factor to distracted driving, when implemented properly, technology has enormous potential to help drivers remain focused. Strategies that focus on this concept already exist. For instance, many smartphones have a driving mode where interactive features and the utilities of the phone are limited when it senses that it is in a moving vehicle. While this solution has ways to bypass it, such as being able to disengage driving mode, they at least serve to make an individual more cognizant of their usage of technology while driving. Further, this idea offers more potential resources that have not yet been broadly pursued. First, eye-tracking software is still in its infancy with use in vehicles. It could be used to monitor where the driver is looking and, if they look away from the road, cars could prompt them to focus on driving. Another potential application of technology is through capacitive grip recognition. We have the technology to determine if drivers have their hands on the steering wheel. This technology could be implemented in a manner similar to eye-tracking software, encouraging drivers to focus on driving. Many other examples of technology have the potential to be used in similar ways to combat distracted driving, and while applying technology may be one of the most challenging strategies to

While many drivers took a driver's education class before obtaining a driver's license, the effectiveness of these courses has recently been broadly questioned. In the specific context of distracted driving, I believe that education courses could be more impactful in highlighting the negative consequences of distracted driving. Interactive learning solutions such as time simulations exhibiting things such as how long it takes to type and send a text message and how far a vehicle can travel in that brief time could be integrated into the curriculum along with the statistics that are already usually emphasized to exhibit the dangers of distracted driving. Further, continuing education requirements could be implemented so that, over the years as individuals drive, they are reminded of the facts about how distracted driving negativity impacts driving ability. This more accessible teaching about distracted driving and more frequent encounters with the danger that it presents could also contribute to putting an end to