Cell Phones

As far as I know, Iowa does not have any laws regarding cell phones. I do not think that Iowa should change or create laws to monitor cell phone usage. Talking on a cell phone, to me, is no different than smoking while driving. A person will have just as much distraction smoking as they wouldtexting on a phone. Talking on a cell phone while driving, I think, can be very important. We use cell phones while we drive to get directions. It is easy to talk to a person and have them describe where they are at, than to have him pull over every other mile and get get new directions. Also when a person is driving late at night. They may only be a few miles from home, but they could be super tired. I have done this before, call a person and have them talk to you until you get home. It keeps you awake. So in this case, talking on a cell phone while driving could be life saving. It could keep a person awake, that way they do not drive into a ditch because they fell asleep at the wheel a few miles from home.

To keep Iowa safe, I think that cell phones could be made safer to use. Hands free is an alternative. Even though statistics state that using hands free is just as distracting as holding a phone, it is still safer. A person still has the ability to use both hands to drive, that way they can correct or make a turn with both hands.

I do not see how the state could really regulate a person's use of a cell phone while driving. How could a police officer really know if a person is talking on the phone using hands-free? That driver could be singing in the car. Or how could a police officer know that a person istexting? Maybe that driver is trying to look at a map or type a destination in their GPS?

All in all I can see how less cell phone usage while driving can promote safer driving, however, I do not see how the state can really regulate the usage of it.

Dangers of Texting and Driving---Erin

Texting and driving, what a deadly accident this can cause. I believe this activity should be banned for all ages in the driver's seat, because this not only applies to teenagers but adults too. Currently about 20 states have made texting and driving illegal. Iowa has not made it a law yet, but I think there should be a law passed banning text messaging while driving. Although texting and driving is very dangerous to anyone on the road, some people feel it is necessary to be in-contact with someone else while driving.
One reason why people cannot stop texting while driving is because they always want to be in touch with the outside world. Even though it can cause harm to someone other than themselves, people still keep texting. An example of someone dangering others while texting according to "Time" is of a man driving a trolley in Boston. While he was texting, he slammed into another trolley. Even though people say they are only going to look at their phone for a second, it is enough time to cause an accident. Since people travel at higher speeds, it does not take very long for someone to travel length of a football field in about five seconds. Although not many people think a car accident can happen that fast, it can only take a second to look down at a phone, cross the median, and hit a car head-on.
I do not believe cell phones should be banned in a vehicle. When someone is talking on a cell phone, they are less likely to cause a crash than someone texting. Also many new gadgets have come about to help make this task hands free. I do not think a cell phone for just teens would be effective. In a "Time" article, it explains how it would be difficult to target one age group, because not all police officers know if they are using their cell phone legal or illegal by their age division. I believe that if texting and driving was publicized more, then more people would stop the use of texting if they were haunted by the deadly results.

textin nd driving--amberlyn

I think that Iowa should change their law to where people cannot text while driving, because making a phone call is different then texting, because the driver does not have to take his or her eyes off the road. If the driver has a passenger in the car with them, the driver can have the passenger text for the driver. I feel this way because texting takes the drivers eyes off the road and is a distraction. Like for example in the article Texting Drivers, Tempting Fate, "... its initial findings showed that drivers who took their eyes off the road for any of a variety of activities, such as answering a phone call, were more likely to get into a crash or near crash. But by far, the most dangerous—and potentially lethal—activity was text-messaging." Also, I think that even if they change the law that people are going to against the law and still are going to text with their phones. In the article Text-Messaging Behind the Wheel, it says that a person who is 17, texts while driving, "she admits that she too occasionally sends texts despite a ban on cell phone use for drivers under 19 and adults with learners permits." Both texting and talking on the phone are dangerous while driving, but I think even if Iowa outlawed phones while driving people would still use them. Like the speed limit, not everyone goes fifty-five on the highways. I personally do not use my phone that much while I am driving and if there are other people in the car I have then take care of my phone calls or text messages I receive while driving. The older generations like parents do not want their children to text and drive. Either way I think that even if Iowa bans texting while driving people are going to text anyway.