Driving Safely: A Necessary Decision

The most dangerous part of car accidents is how little you expect them to happen. Especially when I first started driving, I felt extremely confident in my driving ability and the thought of getting in an accident was certainly scary, but it felt like it could never happen to me. I was wrong. On March 10th of 2022, I was driving to school on slippery roads from the snowstorm the previous day. Going around a curve, I lost all traction with no warning. In a matter of seconds, my Kia sedan slid head-on into a logging truck.

I blacked out on impact and came to a couple of minutes later, uninjured (besides scrapes, bruises, and a headache). My seatbelt, airbags, and the safe design of the driver’s compartment did their job and I was miraculously able to walk out of the accident. My car on the other hand was not so lucky.

My first thought, of course, was how grateful I was to be alive and okay. This was my first near-death experience and I was extremely shaken up, as was my family. The concussion I sustained during the accident was ultimately the most significant setback to the rest of my life I’ve ever experienced. I couldn’t properly focus on my schoolwork, causing me to fall behind in my AP classes. I had to take time off of work for the rest of the season. I wasn’t able to be actively involved in planning our senior events as a class officer and I had to take weeks off from Track, setting me behind in my fitness for my senior season.

Clawing my way back to my normal life was one of my most significant challenges ever, but I’m proud of how well I managed to recover. I was able to return to school about a week later and fully complete both my senior track season and my AP tests (scoring 4 or above on all of them).

Only a couple of months after was graduation day, one of the greatest days of my life. I wasn’t only proud of my accomplishments in and out of the classroom, but also completing a major chapter of my life and moving on to college. I finished second in my class and gave a speech at graduation to my peers and their families. I highlighted my love of small moments and listed off our greatest moments together over the four years, capping it off with the Marcus Aurelius quote, “You could be good today. But instead you choose tomorrow,” to inspire others to be the best version of themself everyday.

Despite how grateful I am for my academic success after the crash and the lack of negative health effects, it still had its long-term effects. It’s taken a long time to build up my confidence behind the wheel since that day. Even now I’ll have momentary flashbacks at the sight of a truck coming around a corner or driving in tight spaces. And even with the insurance payout, I’m still not able to replace my car due to the record-high market prices. Especially living in a rural area, I’m unable to work a job during the summer because I don’t have a car to transport me there.

What isn’t stressed enough about car accidents is how your life’s entire trajectory changes in seconds. First, there’s the short-term trauma and injuries to reconcile with, then the long-term monetary and lasting mental effects. As a new driver, the thought of an accident looms in the distance as a vague idea until it hits you square in the face.

I used to speed to school every morning when I was late for school, and the risks finally caught up with me. I now know I have to prioritize the safety of myself and others on the road. I observe speed limits even when other cars aren’t present like my local rural roads. I’m extremely cautious in inclement weather conditions. For example, I had to drive to work this winter (borrowing my parent’s car) through six inches of fresh snow in the morning. I took this drive at about 15 miles an hour, even if I was running late, in order to ensure my safety.

Driver’s education should aim to teach new drivers how much an accident can affect their life and make them understand all of the risks involved. They should learn that it is NEVER worth it to speed unsafely when you’re late or take risks in icy conditions. A strategy my driver’s ed school used was showing documentaries about real stories of horrific crashes. While this can be extremely jarring, it’s the reality of it. Seeing clips of drivers coming out of a crash with life-changing injuries might make the difference in someone’s decision to drink and drive, for example.

Driver’s education is an extremely important step in assuring the safety of everyone on the road because of the necessary precautions it teaches. When we did driving practice my instructors always had me err on the side of caution. This includes driving slowly on main streets, double-checking blindspots, and always signaling when changing directions or lanes.

One hazard I’d like to see addressed more is the increased usage of smartphones and dashboard screens while driving. While some states are passing laws to outlaw cellphone usage, few people actually abide by them. Drivers have never been more distracted on the road and it’s causing a large number of accidents. More efforts need to be made to properly educate the public about the usage of phones (not just texting but any activity) while driving. This should include the large tablet-like displays installed in newer vehicles. Just because the screen is embedded in the car doesn’t make it any safer. Any form of interactive device just serves to take the attention of the driver away from the road.

The reality is that driving is one of the most dangerous activities we can do in our day-to-day lives because of how easily things can go wrong. But with proper education and rethinking our social norms, we can create a supportive culture of safe driving that will lead to fewer unnecessary deaths each year.