Topic: Texting and driving

Specific purpose: The purpose of this speech is to inform, persuade and motivate the audience over the dangers of texting and driving and how to avoid conflicts and accidents.

Thesis statement: More and more people die or get injured every day because texting and driving, the averages need to go down to insure a safer future.

INTRODUCTION

I. How would you feel if you had to suffer the loss of a cousin, sibling or kid as a result of someone simply checking their phone while driving?

II. Well, I, for starters, lost my 7-year-old cousin as a result of a reckless driver. The driver mentioned how he was checking his phone at the time of the incident. It takes less than a minute to lose a life, yet a life cannot be restored or replaced.

III. Today, I will be talking about the problem of texting and driving, how it became common to text and drive, why everyone should care and how to avoid future incidents.

Credibility- I have conducted information about texting and driving from sources such as the national safety council, DMV.org, NCSL, FCC.gov and vdrive usa.

Transition- Onto why this is a problem texting and driving has become a common issue amongst everyone.

BODY

I. According to the national safety council, 1.6 million crashes occur per year because of texting and driving. The numbers illustrating the dangers of cell phone use while driving is shocking.

-In fact, at any given time throughout the day, approximately 660,000 drivers are attempting to use their phones while behind the wheel of an automobile according to the national safety council.

2- Texting and driving has become something we do on the daily, especially when the phone is easily accessible, and everyone had one.

a-Smartphones have made it easy for us to stay connected at all times. But that can pose serious safety risks if someone decides to check his or her text messages, emails, phone calls, or any other mobile applications while driving. According to DMV.org, at least 9 people are killed every day because of a distracted driver and more than 1,000 people are injured every day due to a distracted driver.

Transition- next, I will be discussing why everyone around should care and take everything into consideration before attempting to text without thinking.

II. The simple answer as to why everyone should care is because it is dangerous. The outcomes of your actions are unpredictable, no one decides to drive off and says “today, I want to run into a child while texting”.

b- We’ve all seen the commercials. A driver takes his or her eyes off the road to read a text message, three seconds, maybe four… and suddenly the driver’s life is changed by a horrific accident. These advertisements are hard to watch. No driver wants to think about being responsible for a traffic accident that takes his or her own life or the lives of other motorists or pedestrians. Nevertheless, most drivers still use their cell phones while operating their vehicle. While taking a phone call is dangerous enough, the advent of text messaging made cell phones even more incompatible with driving a car. Reading or sending a text or email takes both eyes off of the road, your mind off the task of driving, and sometimes both hands off the wheel according to FCC.gov.

c-It is not only dangerous for the driver and the surroundings, it is also illegal according to the national conference of state legislative. With the rise of smart phones and social media, more and more people, , prefer to communicate via text. A   have passed laws to keep up with the corresponding increase in texting and driving. For teens, owning a smartphone is a rite of passage reports that “95 percent of teens have access to a smartphone.” And smartphone ownership for young adults ages 18 to 29 also proves that these devices are the new norm, only Five percent of young adults don’t own a smartphone.

Transition- Finally, I will be discussing how to avoid texting and driving to avoid future conflict.

III. Surprisingly enough, staying off your phone while driving can be quite difficult. After all, once you hear that initial ring or buzz, you're likely to become instantly distracted and reach for your cell, which means your eyes will pull from the road. If you happen to have this problem, then try one of the following tips according to vdrive usa

· Turn your cell on "silent"

· Put your cell out of reach (i.e. the trunk or glove box)

· Put your phone on “driving mode” if available

Sure, any one of these particular methods could stop you from texting while driving. However, the important task is finding the technique that works best 4 u.

Transition- as you can tell, it isn’t that hard to avoid accidents if you are aware of your surroundings.

CONCLUSION

· After obtaining all this information, I hope everyone has a better idea of why texting while driving should be taken into consideration before attempting to put your life and others lives in danger because of something as simple as reading a text that could be done after parking.

And always remember lives could not be replaced.

WORKS CITED

Essex, Amanda.  Affirmative Action | Overview, .

“How to Avoid Texting While Driving.”  Reasons to Wear a Seat Belt – Driver Safety Resource, .

“Real Stories of Texting and Driving Deaths That Will Make Teens Think Twice.”  Teen Safe, 12 July 2018, .

“Texting & Driving.”  DMV.ORG, www.dmv.org/distracted-driving/texting-and-driving.php.

“Texting and Driving Accident Statistics – Distracted Driving.”  Edgarsnyder.com, Edgar Snyder & Associates, .

“The Dangers of Distracted Driving.”  Federal Communications Commission, 5 Apr. 2018, www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/dangers-texting-while-driving.