Zero is the Only Acceptable Outcome

Zero is the only acceptable outcome. Because to accept that even one driving fatality is acceptable is to concede that someone’s life didn’t matter. And that is not acceptable. Every driving fatality represents a loss of the humanity and goodness of that individual’s life and the impact that loss of that person has on their loved ones.

Given the risk proposition of driving, committing time and attention to properly training new drivers cannot be undermined. While driving experience is valuable, road training should be the practice of enforcing knowledge and understanding gained via driver education. When we consider the commitment we willingly exert to improve our other talents, whether in academics, arts, athletics, or other activities, we should be equally committed to the privilege and sanctity of driving to reach our destination safely. Sometimes fast-paced society can become transfixed on goals with material outcomes – a great test score, an award winning performance, or a championship win. While all those efforts and outcomes are commendable, we can elevate safe driving to a similar platform.

I consider myself fortunate that none of my friends or family have been in a car accident resulting in a fatality or serious injury. However, I know many friends and family who have been involved in minor car accidents with minor or no injury. Each of those is an acute reminder of a more potentially devastating outcome averted and an opportunity to learn. We should be transparent and communicate freely regarding driving incidents, including those that did not result in a fatality or serious injury. Near miss driving incidents enable us opportunity to pause, evaluate what we can learn, and be mindful in taking action. By their nature, considerable resource is expended in investigating car accidents to determine who is ‘at fault’. While there are justiable financial and legal motivations for doing so, there is untapped value in devoting an equal focus on learnings and dissemination of those learnings from these incidents. Imagine if every news report documenting a driving fatality or injury included a short statement regarding hazard control management in honor of the lives impacted in the incident. We can have authentic conversations about the cause of driving incidents, devoid of blame and ulterior motive, other than an altruistic interest in empowering someone else to avoid a repeat incident.

Driving deaths can be reduced via an appreciation for the individual behind each driving fatality statistic, enabling each of us to empathize with their surviving loved ones and to mourn a life tragically shortened while committing to take steps within our control to prevent a similar outcome for ourselves and our loved ones. Every life lost due to driving is a loss of potential future greatness. The legacy of those lost to driving fatalities can be the lesson learned from each preventable death.

The step I vow to take to be a better and safer driver is to commit to apply the learnings of historical driving fatalities in honor of the legacy of those lost or maimed and with respect to myself and my loved ones. I emulate safe driving for others by deliberately choosing safety within my control such as wearing my safety belt and enforcing safety belt use by other vehicle occupants, refusing distractions such as cell phone or unnecessary vehicle device operations, allowing ample time to reach my destination, and exercising patience. I imagine the human driver behind every ton of impersonal steel occupying the roadway – someone’s parent, child, or friend – not all that different from myself with an expectation to safely reach their destination. I also employ defensive readiness to manage potential hazards such as weather conditions, unexpected road hazards, road construction, and other drivers I encounter.

Driving is a potentially hazardous proposition that deserves time and monetary investment to improve outcomes. Though we have been driving for more than a century, driving deserves a continuous improvement approach that benefits from research findings and technology. For example, I have firsthand observed a local municipality improvement with implementation of flashing yellow arrow lights to improve left turn safety.

In our daily quest as students to achieve the highest academic, athletic, and activity scores possible, with regards to driving, I challenge you to strive for zero…zero driving incidents. Because I care about you and every person whose life has been tragically altered by a driving incident that resulted in a fatality or devastating injury. Every time you get behind the wheel, I want you to reach your destination safely. So that the only driving statistic we are ever part of are the ones that illustrate driving safety.