Behind the Wheel: A New Perspective

The summer of 2018–the season when my family totaled both of our cars within 48 hours. The first car accident was less serious: two minutes away from home after a five hour drive home from Pennsylvania, my family got t-boned while crossing a four-way-stop. My dad was driving, it wasn’t his fault, and the slow nature of the crash allowed none of us to get hurt. However, the very next day, my mom and I were passengers in the car with my student-driver sister. I still remember the sound of her blinker clicking as she patiently waited to make a left-hand turn onto the busiest and most dangerous road in my city–except she didn’t wait patiently enough. Time had stopped. Her foot pressed on the gas pedal to accelerate, yet I looked to my left and there was a car close, way too close. Our car was hit on the driver’s side and spun out into the middle turn lane. The airbags exploded simultaneously as our seat belts held fast. The aftermath was a blur of adrenaline, sirens, and screaming.

An experience like this is not easily forgotten. My sister had to spend the night in the hospital and couldn’t walk for weeks afterwards. My mom and I got away with just soreness and bruising, however the PTSD lasted long after our bodies recovered. Accidents like these are the reason why drivers ed is so important. This class is a right of passage all 14 and 15 year olds must go through in order to gain the holy grail of freedom: transportation. At this young age, all of the benefits of having a license mask the detrimental effects that come along with it–drunk driving, accidents, and fatalities to name a few. Although this activity may seem mundane and safe because it is done every day, the thousands of lives lost daily to car accidents say otherwise.

Drivers education is likely the most valuable class taught, yet its students are given the shortest time frame to learn the information. Unlike a calculus class at school, every detail taught in this class will need to be applied when on the road. Having a professional driving instructor–someone with much less hysteria than family members–provides numerous benefits. Driving for the first time is already an anxiety-inducing situation, so having a calm teacher is vital to keep students focused. Additionally, their up-to-date knowledge about road rules sometimes teaches students that their parents’ “old school” methods are incorrect. Attentiveness, participation, and caution is crucial to be successful during both instruction and drive time. One missed detail, such as mixing up a flashing yellow light with a flashing red light, can cause unnecessary deaths.

The classic drunk driving videos shown in drivers ed are meant to scare kids into following the law–and, at least momentarily, it works. However, after going to parties and witnessing my friend’s parents drive home after 5 glasses of wine, I soon learned that this is a practice that is commonly ignored. Although attempting to prevent drunk drivers globally may be unrealistic, it is easy to make an impact in your circle of influence. Ensuring your friends have a designated driver, or offering to be a designated driver when needed, is such a painless yet powerful preventative measure.

Despite driving under the influence being a major reason accidents occur, distracted driving is the number one cause of car crashes. The invention of cell phones has accentuated this issue, as the immediate gratification of sending a text or a Snap often overshadows the willpower to wait until the car is stopped. The infinite amount of other temptations available for teenagers, ranging from blasting music to the salty aroma of McDonald’s famous fries ready to be eaten, occur daily. Adrenaline junkies also thrive off of speeding, another dangerous driving practice. Speaking up when driving with someone doing these things is a great first step to pointing out their dangerous behavior and having them change their habits.

Every time I step into a car, I am reminded of how fragile life is and how safe driving is key to preserving it. Drivers education is the pivotal class to turn previously “passenger princesses” into independent drivers–an absolutely terrifying thing. For the sake of everyone else on the road, these incoming drivers must be properly prepared for this task. So, next time your friend speeds, tell them to slow down. Next time they are texting, take their phone and do it for them. And next time someone is drunk, take away their keys. It could save a life.