In the Drivers Seat

People who participate in a driver’s education course are less likely to be involved in a fatal accident. In drivers education courses they teach the importance of not being distracted while driving. Whether it be using a cell phone, eating or drinking, or having others in your car that could distract you. People who take drivers education courses learn valuable lessons and skills that enable them to be safer on the roads. People who don’t take these courses might not learn these lessons and skills that could help them be safer while driving. One of the most important things taught in drivers education courses is how to avoid accidents if possible. These valuable lessons could be life saving.

Drivers can take multiple precautions to reduce their chances of getting into a fatal accident. The use of cell phones is one of the leading causes for fatal car accidents. By putting their cell phones away they could severely decrease their chance of a serious accident. Just waiting to respond to that one message could save lives. Other causes for fatal accidents could be eating or drinking and having other people, like friends, in your car that could distract you. By eliminating all these distractions, drivers are better equipped to act on and anticipate an accident.

A couple weeks after I obtained my learners permit, I got in a car accident. I was driving with my grandma in the right lane on the main road in my small town. I had my turn signal on to go into the right hand turn lane and someone waiting to turn out of a business thought I was turning in where he was, so he pulled out and hit the side of the car. In drivers education you’re taught to avoid accidents if possible. In my situation I could not have avoided it. If I swerved to the left, I would have hit someone in the left lane. If I braked hard, the person behind me would have hit me from behind. After the accident, people always asked me if I was scared to drive again. If I didn’t go back out and drive after that, I would have never gotten over the fact that I had an accident. I just had to face the fact that it happened and move on. I definitely learned to become a more defensive driver. My grandpa always told me when I started driving to pretend like no one else is a good driver and after my accident I finally understood what he meant by that.

Steps I can take to be a safer driver are to limit distractions and to use my grandpa’s piece of advice to pretend like no one else is a good driver. As far as helping others, I could teach them things I learned if they didn’t take driver’s education and not distract my friends or family if they’re driving me.