As I was driving to school at 7:15 one morning down Interstate 75, I nearly saw my life flash before my own eyes as a faded old fuchsia Geo Metro swerved into my lane, barely grazing plastic against plastic by a single hair. And I wondered in absolute rage, as I smelled the burning rubber from my tires from braking so hard, if the idiot in front of me simply did not see me or if it was intentional. I eventually caught up to the maniac to get a closer look, only to see a very angry young woman with nostrils flaring, screaming into her cell phone. Apparently she was completely oblivious to the fact that she almost side-scraped me.

A serious accident could have occurred that day, and I’m glad that I had my brakes checked the week before and was wired from the double-shot of espresso I drank earlier — otherwise, something bad could have happened to the both of us. Not to mention we could have pissed off hundreds of other motorists behind us for making them late for work.

So who let all the inconsiderate drivers on the road? How in the world did some people pass their driving tests and why do these people possess driver’s licenses? How can they afford insurance? Or out of fairness, why are the majority of drivers, including me, so negligent when it comes to driving safety? Don’t people know it’s dangerous to drive with only one hand? Statistics from the 2004 National Highway Safety Traffic Administration show that 25 percent of accidents are caused by distracted motorists using a cell phone. Driving is already a danger in itself, and these wonderful technological advances in communications called cellular phones have become a nightmare to us because, like almost anything, we abuse them. We become so caught up in conversation that we lose focus on the road ahead.

The New England Journal of Medicine showed in a study that operating a cell phone while driving quadrupled the risk of a collision. I am sad to say that I am guilty of reckless driving while on the phone and that most likely by the end of the day, I will call somebody while I am on my way home. But after reading the above statistics, I would think twice before doing so.

So what can we do about it? How can we prevent ourselves and others from getting hurt? Several countries have banned cell phone use while operating a motor vehicle, but the United States still allows it. After all, phone companies are big business. Or maybe, according to federal regulations, not enough people have died yet from the cause of cell phones. Either way, since the government is not going to stop us, we should stop ourselves. The role of regulation may be controversial, but the role of the individual’s responsibility is obvious.

Luckily for us, savvy yet affordable hands-free car kits and headsets are readily available. Bluetooth technology, the newest form of communication, is accessible on our earpieces. Although hands-free gear reduces the risk of accidents, it’s still not the best solution to avoiding unnecessary accidents. Unfortunately, not everyone has manual speed on his or her car, so cell phones are going to be a continuous problem for us with automatics.

Although we may be unaware at the moment of driving risks, we can reduce potential harm by leaving our cell phones in the cup holder while behind the wheel. If not, we can at least avoid fighting with our significant others on the phone while we’re driving. It doesn’t hurt to be a defensive driver either.

Jacklyn Lee is a sophomore finance major. She may be contacted at [email protected].