Current Road Traffic Safety Concerns In America

Road traffic safety should be of utmost importance to all drivers on the road. Distracted driving has a tremendous effect on road traffic safety. Millions of lives around the world are lost each year due to distracted driving. One of the main causes behind this distraction is due to texting while driving. According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), “distracted driving causes 1.6 million crashes each year and 17% of all caused injuries.” Some other reasons behind distracted driving include eating/drinking, talking on the cellphone and etc. Fortunately, there are ways to promote road traffic safety such as charging higher fines to those who text while drive, by educating others about the dangers of distracted driving through campaigns and social networking sites and by setting up a good example for others.

For those people who need their phones turned on, in case, they receive an important call, should either park on the side of the road to attend an important phone call or install applications such as AT&T Drive Mode, Cellcontrol and Live2Txt on their phones that will help them get rid of this habit. The purpose of these apps is to monitor the activities of drivers and provide a real-time feedback about their driving. Drivers can also take pledges and block other apps that might cause distraction while on the road. Recently, Snapchat has been the app used mostly by teenagers while driving. Teenagers are taking ‘snaps’ of themselves while they drive which is extremely dangerous and possibly worse than texting while driving. While it might seem harmless to the youth, it has become one of the leading cause of car accidents in the United States. To avoid the temptation to snap and drive, safe driving apps will serve beneficial to those who are unable to resist otherwise. Most importantly, getting in the habit to turn off all mobile devices while driving will result in a lesser chance to snap and drive.

Members of the community can also unite together to encourage safe driving. This can be done by parents, students and teachers. If parents portray safe driving around their children, then those children will grow up to also drive cautiously. Students and teachers can also raise awareness of ways to practice safe driving by promoting the use of safe driving apps, starting campaigns and taking advantage of social media such as Facebook and Twitter to spread the dangers of distracted driving around the world. If enough people unite together for this one cause, then more organizations can be built towards promoting safe driving. The purpose of these organizations would be to enforce safe driving by blocking all text messages and phone calls until the vehicle is stopped. By bringing an end to distracted driving, we will be able to provide a safe driving environment for everyone on the road and also enhance road traffic safety. Furthermore, road traffic safety can be promoted to reduce accidents if everyone was simply encouraged to follow the law. According to National Safety Council, “wearing a seat belt reduces the risk of fatal injury by 45% and risk of moderate injury by 50%.” This, alone, should be enough reason for everyone to wear a seat belt in a motor vehicle. Surprisingly, “only 68% of Americans wear a safety belt.” This statistic speaks volume. The risk of an injury or fatal death could be significantly reduced if all passengers in the car wore their seat belts. Not to mention, their injuries could result to be less life threatening and severe. Most cars these days have built in alarm systems that make noise if the front passengers are not wearing their seat belts. If these same alarm systems are also installed for the passengers in the back, then everyone would have no choice but to wear their seat belts. This would greatly diminish the fatalities and injuries caused in any accident. Road traffic safety can be improved by reducing speed limits on busy highways, charging higher fines and increasing visibility during nights. Usually, the busiest roads in a city are the ones where most accidents occur because everyone is trying to beat the traffic and get to their destination faster. In my opinion, the speed limit on these roads should not exceed 55 mph. This might make the traffic move at a slower pace but it will reduce injuries due to driving at a lower speed, in case, an accident does occur. I also think that people who are speeding should be charged higher fines up to $300 especially on busy highways with more traffic. According to speeding statistics, “the national average cost of a speeding ticket is between $115-$135”.

If this fine was increased then the fear of being charged a higher finer could stop many from the temptation to violate the speed limit. Additionally, busy city roads should be surrounded by street lights. Poor visibility is a serious problem especially in underdeveloped countries. In my city, Huntsville, I often have to drive across roads that are pitch black after six p.m. with the exception of a few reflectors. If street lights were installed along the roads, then visibility and road traffic safety would greatly increase as “40% of all fatal car accidents occur at night.” According to cdc.gov, “alcohol-impaired driving crashes account for nearly one-third of all traffic-related deaths in the United States.” This is something that must be avoided under any circumstances. People must comprehend the serious consequences of drinking while driving which can only be accomplished by enforcing stricter laws. “While drinking while driving is illegal in all states, it is not prohibited in every state such as Connecticut, Delaware, Missouri, Mississippi and etc.” Road traffic safety can be significantly enhanced by implementing strict drinking while driving laws in all 50 states and cutting the blood-alcohol level from 0.10 to 0.05 percent. If the law is properly enforced and there is zero tolerance for drunk drivers all across the United States, only then it will result in reduced number of traffic injuries. Moreover, in this era of technology, advanced innovations can be made to reduce drinking while driving accidents. In 2008, a project had started to reduce drunken-driving fatalities. This project plans to install technologies in cars to detect drunk drivers and disable them from driving by installing systems that can measure a driver’s blood alcohol level from a his/her breath and when he/she touches the start button. “The breath-based system would measure the concentration of ethanol and carbon dioxide molecules exhaled from the body,” according to usatoday.

On the other hand, the touch system will measure alcohol levels present in skin tissue through infrared light and the driver will not even realize when he/she is being monitored. The technology is scheduled to arrive in the next five years and will serve as an optional safety feature for those who disregard drinking and driving as dangerous. As technology is slowly taking over the world, it would be beneficial to create new systems that will increase road traffic safety. In addition to the existing safety features in cars such as seatbelts, airbags and cruise control, there can be more driver assistance systems to reduce injuries. This can include motion sensors, alcohol detectors, seatbelt alarms for all passengers, traction control systems and even communication systems between cars. A vehicle-to-vehicle communication system will enable cars to communicate with each other for a safer travel. This can be done through installing sensor technology that will understand the GPS coordinates and detect pedestrians, bicyclists and proximity of other vehicles. By doing so, drivers could be warned if a vehicle or person was nearby and be able to adjust their speeds accordingly. This is similar to the already equipped features in some cars such as blind-spot warning and lane-assist technology. The use of these technologies will prove to be highly effective in avoiding crashes especially if they are made available for all average cars. Lastly, installing a traction control system (TCS) will ensure that wheels don not spin while driving or accelerating the vehicle. Similarly, antilock braking system (ABS) which prevents the wheels from locking while braking.

In conclusion, road traffic safety is one of the biggest concerns in America as it is among the top ten leading cause of death. However, it is something that can be fixed if everyone unites together for this cause by doing their part. The government can do their part by enforcing stricter regulations against distracted driving and improving roads and highways for a safe travel. This can be done through increasing visibility during night time, reducing speed limit on busy highways and completely prohibiting drinking while driving no matter how much blood-alcohol level is detected. Parents can lead good examples in front of children by demonstrating safe driving. Teachers can raise awareness of the dangers of distracted driving on social media. Companies can fund for newer technology to be installed in cars to assist drivers and substantially diminish the “1.3 million crashes that occur each year.”