Drivers Ed Essay

Drivers Ed Essay

I believe that it is vital for all drivers to have proper driving education and experience. Not only will it make the roads a safer environment, but it will also reduce countless deaths and countless dollars being lost. The first step we can take to reducing the number of deaths on the road is by mandating a 10-hour driving lesson before one can get their license. At the moment we have an option for a 6-hour driving practice, but this is just an option, it is not required. I believe by making this practice a requirement prior to obtaining a license, driving casualties will be significantly decreased. We have all heard of one too many fatal car accidents, and I believe that this reality is unacceptable, we should not have to just settle with this. We need more educated drivers, and that first starts with a mandatory pre-testing.

The next step that we could take are stricter punishments for DUIs. By driving under the influence of alcoholic substances, one is immediately putting surrounding drivers’ lives at risk. If there were stricter punishments for DUIs I believe drivers would think twice before having a drink and getting behind the wheel. I work in a Taco Mac and I see people come in and order alcoholic beverages, then leave and drive home. And every time I see this, I cringe. It shocks me that so many people do this, to the point that no one sees a problem with it anymore. I do not want to say that the solution is eliminating serving alcohol in restaurants, but there should be a way to monitor a customer’s BAC before getting behind the wheel. Drunk driving isn’t cool or praised upon, and the harsh reality is that many teens think it’s “impressive” or “daring” to put themselves in dangerous situations. And, it’s all fun until one teen dies because they took it too far, and at that point it’s too late.

I personally have never driven impaired, or have been hit by a drunk driver, but I have family that has been. My family has never been alcohol drinkers, and we look down on drunk drivers because they have taken so many lives due to their selfish actions. I can recall how angry I was at the drunk driver that hit my brother, it was so selfish and that driver’s actions almost took my brother’s life. This built up rage and fury had to be taken care of, and I believe if you want to make a change you have to do it intelligently, not acting through anger. So, as I said before, creating a stricter punishment for DUIs would provide incentive for drivers to think twice before hopping behind the wheel intoxicated.

One precaution I take when driving is constantly monitoring my surroundings. I know I’m a good driver, so instead of perfecting my driving, I monitor those around me. I constantly check my review mirror, taking note of all the cars around me. I take note if I see a driver who’s driving really fast, or a driver who doesn’t use their turn signals. By taking note of these drivers I can properly prepare myself so that I don’t drive too close to them. I also take extra precaution at traffic lights, before I go when the light turns green I always wait a few seconds just in case there is a bad driver trying to run a red light. I have actually seen this happen first hand. Luckily, since I took the appropriate precautions, I didn’t get hit. Unfortunately not everyone takes these same precautions, and if anyone else were to have been in my situation, I cannot confidently say they would have avoided that accident. This goes back to the point I made before, with having those 10 hours of practice, drivers will know to take these precautions before going through an intersection.

In conclusion, I believe that it is more than important to accurately educate drivers before letting them operate a vehicle on their own. Not only will this make the roads a safer place, but the countless lives lost to car accidents will be a thing of the past. By enforcing stricter punishments for DUIs, drivers will have an incentive to think twice before operating a vehicle after having a few drinks. Restaurants need to develop a method to monitor their customer’s alcohol level before allowing them to drive themselves home. Instead of getting mad at these drivers and acting out of rage, I believe real change comes from intelligently finding solutions and taking action. And, by properly monitoring my surroundings and taking accurate precautions, I not only create a safer driving environment for myself, but for the drivers around me as well.