The Dangers Imposed by Distracted Driving and How to Mitigate Them

The Dangers Imposed by Distracted Driving and How to Mitigate Them

Just three weeks ago a distracted driver nearly took my life.

It was just an ordinary Monday night. After tossing around a football with my friends, I was driving home on the same road I took to get to school every day. Just ahead of me, a teenage girl looking at her phone failed to notice a stop sign, speeding directly into the major road I was on. Traveling at 50 miles per hour, I immediately slammed on the brakes and swerved to the right but inevitably failed, hitting her large SUV with my small car in a devastating T-Bone accident. Upon collision, I was immediately left unconscious, suffering a major concussion among others in my chest, hips, and back. I woke to the horrid smell of smoke and pain throughout my body. Thankfully, the other driver was not injured, and I was able to leave the hospital on the same night. However, the realization of the importance of drivers ed from my accident will never leave me.

Distracted driving took nearly 4000 lives in just 2015. These instances of distracted driving stem from bad habits as an early driver. Often, drivers get comfortable behind the wheel and will start off changing the song or glancing at the navigation. These poor habits then transform into the distracted driving instances that take the lives of thousands of people each year. It is no question that distracted driving must be put to a stop. The better question is, how?

To start, strong drivers ed programs are vital, as they provide the framework for the strong habits of early drivers. Without these, new drivers may fall into the same distracted driving trap that many others fall into. In addition, drivers should install a phone-blocking application for driving. There are numerous free versions of this available on any app store. However, it only takes one to change the habits of a developing driver. By not being able to go on their phones, drivers will be more attentive to the road and will avoid many distracted driving related accidents.

In order to improve road safety, drivers should utilize defensive driving to their advantage. Often, drivers rely on others to do the right thing, drive at high speeds, and have numerous distractions on the road. By abiding to distracted driving rules, these drivers will be better on the road and improve overall safety. Courses online can teach some basic examples of defensive driving and can save lives. I believe that if people simply followed the basic principles of defensive driving that road safety would be vastly improved.

My experiences with distracted driving will work in cohesion with passion for social change to make me driven to find solutions for distracted driving in the future. I believe that with a strong education and motivation to succeed, I can become a better advocate for important topics such as distracted driving.