Drivers tips

The importance of driver education to reduce the number of deaths as a result of driving is to help young drivers, 14-18, is to gain skills, experience, and confidence for driving. I have a lot of friends whose main reason for them not driving is that they are scared and their parents don’t push them to try and get on the road. Once a person turns 18 they don’t have to take any driver’s ed courses, but that means they miss out on the experience with a trained professional and they don’t have any experience beforehand. Always remember to practice with a trusted adult over 21 before you go off on your own.

Although we can’t control how other people will be on the road, we can control how we drive. Driver error is the number one cause of automobile deaths and wearing a seatbelt prevents about 50% of deaths. Some ways to control yourself can also be making sure that you are taking the proper safety precautions on the road such as wearing your seat belt, following the speed limit, keeping your eyes on the road at all times, being wary of bad weather, and limiting distractions. If you know that the roads are going to be bad because of snow or rain, either stay home or try to stay on the main roads, which are more likely to be plowed first during a storm. To limit distraction around you, try to put your phone in a place you do not see so you aren’t tempted to check, if friends distract you they can either sit in the back or avoid driving with friends in the car. Another way to prevent deaths on the road is to not drink/drug usage while driving. About 30% of car crashes are because of drinking while driving, a simple way to avoid that would be to bring a sober friend if you are going out or call someone if you have had any drinks that night. Sometimes the issue can be with your car, so always make sure you are checking it every year to see if it needs repairs. If you know that your car breaks aren’t working or there is another issue try to get it fixed as soon as you can.

When I was little my mom and I got into a car accident. I was too young to remember but she does, a lady didn’t stop at a stop sign and ended up hitting the front of my mom’s car, which would fall into the driving error category of a car crash. This was a driving error caused by the other person. During the winter to early spring, Iowa gets very bad snow storms. In my own experience driving to work or driving on the back roads a couple of days after a snowstorm, I usually see over 5 cars in ditches. Most of them didn’t look like they were damaged, what most likely happen was that they lost control of their tires in slip, this is a very common way for people to get into an accident. About 24% of crashes are on the snowy pavement.

Ways we can take steps to become better drivers is to limit our distractions while driving. Don’t go on your phone even for a split second because that could change your life. Keep your eyes on the road and try not to let your mind wander and then get stuck daydreaming while driving. Never drink and drive, always call someone or bring a friend if you believe you’re going out to drink. Spread awareness of the dangers of driving so that fewer people make the same mistakes others did. Take a class on driving, especially if you are young so that you gain more knowledge about the rules of the road. Stay alert on the roads, sometimes a quick action can be the only thing that saves you when another person messes up. If you feel like you are a bad driver try to see what bad habits you have that you can avoid in the future. 56% of accidents are caused by road rage drivers, if you are someone that struggles with road rage there are many tips to remember while driving. Listen to music or a podcast that will calm you down, if needed pull over and take deep breaths to relax your nervous system, and try to remember that people on the road are learning how to drive too and to not take it personally.