Simple Safety

In the atmosphere of young drivers that I am surrounded by on a daily basis, I can’t help but notice the unsafe practices that occur while others are driving. When sitting in my school’s parking lot I gaze around my car as people are revving their engines and trying to show off to friends in their parents’ old rusty cars. As I look around I consider three things: the importance of drivers training, how accidents can be prevented, and what I myself will do to protect others.

Driver education is extremely important in the process towards getting a license. Trust me, I remember the hours spent in an uncomfortable chair listening to an instructor tell you what color brake lights are but this is necessary! Knowing every little law and regulation is absolutely crucial when you are going to be allowed to use a machine which can easily end lives; understanding what every button in your car does and having “common sense” while driving is equally important. This is why I believe driver training is crucial for those who want to be behind the wheel.

Following the passing of driver education, the important hours of practice with a parent, and success on the feared driver road test, teenagers must continue the same amount of caution as they had beforehand. The largest component of unsafe driving in my observance is the practice of being distracted while going down the road. Personally, every time I get in the car I put my phone away in the center council and do not acknowledge it until I arrive at my destination. I believe this is the best way to prevent drivers from looking at their devices while driving from point A to point B. In 2018 in the US 2,800 people were killed and estimated 400,00 were injured in a crash from distracted driving. This is a number that could disappear if everyone bands together and agrees to put their phones down while driving.

The summer before my senior year of High School, I was on my way to work and driving through town at 25 miles per hour. I was approaching a turn in the road when a silver sedan came flying around the curve, crossed through my lane, and drove straight through someone’s mailbox, missing a thick tree by mere feet; this instance terrified me as I imagined other outcomes: what if they hadn’t swerved back into their lane, what if they had hit the tree, what if they were going faster? Afterwards I had a deeper drive to make sure I will not be a distracted driver. I never want to end up in a situation where I put myself or others in the way of harm, especially if it is for something as meaningless as a mere test.

By paying attention in drivers training, making sure they are safe while on the road, and reflecting and learning from scary instances on the road, teenagers can help prevent tragedies before they occur. So join those who vow to drive safe and protect the futures of millions who share the road.