In The Driver’s Seat

In the Driver’s Seat

The power you have in the driver’s seat could save a life. This year, my 18-year old cousin got in an accident when driving to spend a weekend away with friends. Around 15-minutes from their destination he needed to take the next motorway exit. His friend relayed this information late and acting quickly, he decided try and make it. Due to the speed he was travelling he hit a curb on the roads edge causing the car to spin back across the road and into the central reservation. Another car then crashed into his. Fortunately, all passengers were not hurt but the car was written off.

The control you have in the driver’s seat can help you to reduce the risk of car accidents. Car accidents are the biggest killer for teens in the United States (CDC Injury Center, 2020). Drivers ed has been proven to reduce the risk of car accidents for younger drivers (Shell et al., 2015). Completing a drivers ed course in any state will minimise the chance of accidents through teaching defensive driving habits, how to safely operate a vehicle, and up-to-date traffic laws (Online Drivers Ed., 2020). The estimated lives lost from car accidents in 2019 is almost equivalent to the population of the state of California at 38,800 (NSC, 2020, United States Census Bureau, 2020).

The responsibility you have in the driver’s seat could prevent avoidable accidents. When I was 21, a car merged into the side of my car on a busy 6-lane highway in California. It only takes a second of being distracted to potentially put you, the passengers in your car, and others on the road, in danger. As the accident was fortunately minor, all parties involved were lucky to be unharmed, however, this is not always the case. In Namibia, another cousin, aged 23, ended up in hospital after flipping his car. He clipped the back of a car and due to his door less vehicle, his arm was sliced open and he ended up getting stitches. Although, you may feel like a confident and competent driver, not all drivers on the road are so it is important to be constantly watching for hazards and to know how to safely share the road for other motor vehicles, bicyclist and pedestrians; this is taught through practise and theory in drivers ed.

The duty you have in the driver’s seat is to drive carefully to keep everyone on the road safe. I am just one person with countless stories. In order to reduce to the unnecessary high number of deaths from car accidents, drivers ed courses should be mandatory in all 50 states for any teen and warrants subsidisation from the government.

Online Drivers Ed. (2020). Retrieved 14 June 2020, from https://driversed.com/

NSC (2020). Fatality Estimates. Retrieved 14 June 2020, from https://www.nsc.org/road-safety/safety-topics/fatality-estimates#:~:text=In%202019%2C%20an%20estimated%2038%2C800,from%202017

Shell, D., Newman, I., Córdova-Cazar, A., & Heese, J. (2015). Drivers ed and teen crashes and traffic violations in the first two years of driving in a graduated licensing system. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 82, 45-52. doi: 10.1016/j.aap.2015.05.011

CDC Injury Center (2020). Teen Drivers: Get the Facts | Motor Vehicle Safety | CDC Injury Center. Retrieved 14 June 2020, from https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/teen_drivers/teendrivers_factsheet.htmlNational

United States Census Bureau (2020). Retrieved 15 June 2020, from https://www.census.gov/glossary/#term_Populationestimates