And Just Like That…

Sotonye
Wokoma

And
Just Like That…..

‘Driving
on the road, or even practicing to drive on the road, is a privilege,
not a right.’ This is something that my father would sing in my ear
ever since I started learning to drive. Every year, thousands of
people die from car related accidents and the amount of accidents a
year can be prevented if everyone had a proper driving education,
knew the guidelines of the road, and simply abided by them. Whenever
you hop in the driver’s seat, you are risking your life to get from
one destination to the next, because in an instant, just like that,
your life, or the life of someone you care about, can be snatched
away.

The
importance of drivers ed in reducing the number of deaths is
just this: to protect ourselves. An essential principle when driving
on the road is driving defensively , meaning you drive to protect
yourself and the people in your vehicle. The foundational step in
obtaining safety is to have had a proper driving education and
knowing exactly what the rules of the road are. By knowing something
as simple as knowing whether or not to turn right at an intersection,
it can preserve your life and the life of other people on the road.
Prior to getting a permit, you have to be knowledgeable of the
fundamentals of driving, like knowing what road signs mean and what
to do in certain situations. As soon as you get a license, all the
information you are supposed to remember flies out the window, or
they are tossed to the side with no regard of their importance. This
is how accidents happen, and how so many people die in car accidents.

Steps
that can be taken to reduce the number of driving-related deaths are
to make sure the environment inside the vehicle is not distracting,
purchase a driver’s manual that talks about the rules of driving so
you can always have a reference, limit going on your phone for any
reason and paying attention to your surroundings. There was a car
accident I was in when I was younger that is engraved in my
subconscious. I was probably in fifth or sixth grade, and my mom
picked up my sisters and I from school. On the way back she wanted to
stop and get something for dinner. She pulled into the drive-thru of
a fast food restaurant and a big black SUV was exiting the line. He
wasn’t paying attention, made a wide turn and slammed into the side
of my mom’s car. No one was severely hurt but the accident could
have been prevented if the other person simply paid attention to what
he was doing. Steps I can personally take to be a better & safer
driver is to continue to study the guidebook for drivers, making sure
I am not distracted or there are no distractions near me and
practicing alertness whenever I drive.