Safe Driving a Duty to Yourself and Others

Safe Driving A Duty to Yourself and Others

Drivers ed and the application of that education is undoubtedly the single most important action that can be taken to reduce the number of deaths that result each year from driving. Educating drivers to be safe not only for themselves but for others requires a wide variety of lessons in order to be successful. These include how to drive safely, what type of driving is increasingly dangerous and why, as well as examples that students can connect with and be impacted by on a deep level. When I went through drivers ed a lot of the small things needed for safe driving have turned out to be far more significant and helpful in keeping me safe than I thought they would have been. These include using turn signals, knowing the different types of signs, and making sure not to follow too closely. Eventually, after I left the classroom and got behind the wheel of a car, I witnessed the danger of people who did not follow these seemingly small rules. They put themselves and others in unnecessarily dangerous situations. I have seen cars get hit because they failed to use their turn signal or turn into a one way street thinking it was just a normal one.

In drivers ed every aspect must be attached to incredible significance because even the little things can cause people to die unnecessarily. What can make driving dangerous must also be explained because it typically gets more people’s attention than the information about what makes driving safe. I strongly believe that drivers’ education needs to explicitly teach that dangerous driving is not always the opposite of safe driving. Far more frequently dangerous driving is the failure to follow certain procedures like checking a mirror or using a turn signal. I personally wish this would have been explained to me more clearly as a driving student.

As a student the single most impactful lessons my peers and I were taught in our drivers ed classes were always real life stories. Actual events of what happened to people when they did not drive safely leave a mark. My friends will talk about them now and again and they have definitely motivated us to drive more safely than any of the other lessons we received.

Requirements should be increased in order to reduce the amount of deaths related to driving education and lack of driving experience. While it may be required in some areas drivers ed was optional for me and not viewed as that important. I strongly believe that a year or at least a semester-long class should be required in all highschools. This class in schools should be considered of the highest importance compared to other classes because it has the greatest potential to save people’s lives. Additionally requirements for driving experience before a student gets their license should be increased. The more driving a student can do, with an experienced driver before going out and driving on their own, the less risk they will have of getting into a fatal accident. It should be made clear that safe driving is more important than quickly getting a license.

In my experience the greatest number of problems I have heard about from my family members were related to getting in accidents when being overly tired. Being tired completely impairs one’s ability to drive because reaction time slows and one can lose complete consciousness or concentration. This puts the person driving the car and other drivers on the road at unnecessary risk of getting into a serious accident. After hearing and experiencing this personally I always ask for help and do not drive or allow others to drive when they are tired. It can be as dangerous as drunk driving and to some capacity should be treated similarly in regard to peer to peer support.

The most important thing that I will do to be a better driver is to eliminate as many distractions or impairments to my driving as possible. I have only been driving for a few years and limited experience mixed with distractions to my driving could be very dangerous. I commit to not using my phone while driving and will pull over and completely park my car before I use it. I will not drive while impared by tiredness and will ask for help with my driving when I need it. I will not ingest substances that will make me impared. Additionally, I will do my best to protect others and make sure that their driving and decisions are safe for them and everyone else on the road. I will remind others as well as myself that dangerous driving is not only dangerous to ourselves but to everyone else on the road. It is our responsibility to reduce driving related deaths because we have the power to do so.